Little Visits
by Concave Patterns
Summary: It all started with appetizers and an ankle monitor...
1. Chapter 1

"Do I have to be here?" Darcy whined to Jane as she took another swig of her champagne. "I mean, don't get me wrong, the free food and booze is pretty great but it's soooooo boooooring. And my dress itches. I think I forgot to cut the tag out. It's giving me a rash. _A rash_, Jane!"

"Okay, okay." Jane relented, rolling her eyes as she dug through her evening clutch and produced a set of keys, "If you really want to leave that badly, take the car. I'll call a cab later."

"Yes!" Darcy snagged the keys from her hand, "You're a lifesaver. Thanks, boss lady." With a quick salute to Jane, she started off towards the exit.

She had really tried to stick it out all night, but after two excruciatingly long hours, Darcy couldn't force herself to participate in any more lame party small talk, no matter how much champagne she had downed.

Thankfully SHIELD's annual cocktail party was just that: annual. She only had to subject herself to this God-awful affair once a year.

Looking back over her shoulder, Darcy saw that Jane was already deep into conversation with Dr. Banner, her hands moving around animatedly as she talked science to him.

Yeah, Darcy _sooooo_ didn't fit in with this crowd.

She didn't consider herself to be dumb. In fact, Darcy was damn proud that she'd earned her lab assistant's job at SHIELD fair and square. But did she have any interest in spending her Friday night talking shop with a bunch of stuffy suits? Hell no.

She was only a few short, glorious steps away from the door when a waiter passed by, holding a tray of goodies that smelled like heaven.

"Crudités?" He offered in a very haughty French tone as he held out the tray. The accent was probably fake, Darcy thought, and so was his hair from the looks of it.

"Thanks," she grabbed a whole handful of the appetizers, causing the waiter to raise an eyebrow disapprovingly.

"Hey, you don't know what I've been through tonight. I deserve these." Darcy popped one of the appetizers into her mouth, letting out a little moan of satisfaction. "Yum. You got any more?"

The waiter pointed to the edge of the room, "Banquet table." He said shortly before turning his back and walking away.

Yep, stuffy suits. Every single one of them.

Darcy chewed her bottom lip. Did she go for the food or high tail it out of there? Snacks or freedom?

Her stomach chose that minute to rumble loudly, making the decision for her.

She'd just take a couple of munchies for the road, she told herself as she approached the banquet table and opened her purse, stuffing a few mini croissants inside.

Ooh, they had cheesecake! Could she manage to smuggle a piece of that home?

Darcy was debating her plan of attack for the cheesecake when a sudden tingle shot up her spine, alerting her to the fact that she was not alone. Someone was standing right behind her.

"Do leave some for the rest of us." A voice spoke dryly into her ear.

He was definitely male and he was definitely standing way too close to her. Darcy could practically feel the heat of his body against her back.

She whirled around, a sharp retort on the tip of her tongue until she realized who had approached her.

Staring down at her with a sly smile was over six feet of dark, godly hotness.

"Loki, right?" Darcy crossed her arms over her chest, eying him carefully, "Thor's little brother."

There was nothing little about him though, she was painfully aware of that. His black suit fit him impeccably, showing off his lean muscles and long legs. He didn't wear a tie; instead the collar of his shirt was open, giving her a far too nice view of his pale neck. His hair was brushed back and his eyes were a bright, startling shade of green that had been twinkling with amusement until Darcy made the 'brother' comment. Now he just looked mad.

"You would do well to never call me that again." His voice was sharp, meant to intimidate her, but all Darcy could think of was how sexy it sounded.

"Sorry. How about 'Would-be Destructor of Earth.' That any better?" She asked with no small amount of sarcasm.

Loki smiled, giving her a quick view of perfect, white teeth. A dark chuckle escaped his lips, "I think I am going to like you."

Her body flushed with heat and Darcy dragged her eyes away from him to stare at a plate of shrimp instead. "What are you doing here anyway?" She hoped her voice sounded nonchalant because her stomach was currently doing cartwheels.

"I am meant to be rehabilitated by SHIELD." He sounded bored, as if SHIELD's efforts to reform him were completely pointless.

They probably were, Darcy thought.

"As such," he continued, "I am being held here under electronic surveillance." He gestured to his leg and that's when Darcy noticed the bulky black box strapped to his ankle.

She tried, she _really, really_ tried to hold back her laughter, but it was no use. It bubbled up out of her until she was leaning against the banquet table for support, trying to catch her breath.

"Do tell," Loki's eyes narrowed, "What is so funny?"

"It's just..." Darcy paused, sucking in a deep breath as her laughter subsided, "out of all of SHIELD's high tech gizmos, they chose to slap an old-school house arrest ankle monitor on you. Oh God, that's too funny."

"It is rather unbecoming, isn't it?" Loki looked down at the device. His brow furrowed in concentration and in the next second, the black monitor became a small green snake that coiled around his ankle. "Ah, much better."

"Holy shit!" Darcy exclaimed, jumping back and looking around wildly to make sure that her little outburst went unnoticed. When no one looked her way, she hiked the skirt of her tight dress up a few inches so she could crouch down and take a better look at his leg.

"That is insanely cool." She reached her hand out before hesitating and looking up at Loki, "Can I touch it?"

Loki looked surprised, "You are not frightened?"

"Nope," Darcy replied easily, "I lived in New Mexico, snakes are everywhere out there. You get used to it."

When Loki nodded his head, Darcy stretched her fingers out towards the snake. Its tiny pink tongue flicked out, brushing against the skin of her hand.

"It feels so real." She breathed, gently running her index finger over the snake's head, "Is it real? Do you feel anything when I touch it, or is it totally independent from your body?"

"Beautiful and inquisitive." Loki grinned down at her, "You are quite fascinating for a Midgardian."

His comment made her blush and Darcy was suddenly very aware of her compromising position, crouched on her knees before him, her head dangerously close to brushing against the front of his pants.

She quickly pulled her hand away and popped up to her full height, smoothing down the skirt of her black lace dress.

"So yeah," she cleared her throat uncomfortably, "that's a neat party trick. Does SHIELD know you still have your magic?"

"That," Loki said, stepping closer and running a hand down her bare arm, "is to be our little secret, darling." When his hand reached hers, his thumb skimmed over the sensitive skin on the inside of her wrist and Darcy nearly stopped breathing as he bent forward, placing a chaste kiss on the back of her hand.

She was momentarily stunned. His touch had lit her skin on fire and made her heart pound. Her palms were clammy. Her legs felt wobbly. She'd never felt anything like that before. What the hell had just happened?

When she'd come back to her senses, she looked around but Loki had disappeared.

That's when she realized she'd never even told him her name.

* * *

><p>It was two months before she saw Loki again.<p>

(Not that she was counting or anything.)

She was in a park of all places, making notes in a spiral notebook as Jane, Bruce Banner, and Tony Stark put the finishing touches on their Einstein Rosen bridge.

"Are you guys sure that we're ready to move to the testing phase?" Darcy asked warily. The last time they tested the wormhole machine, it had almost flattened SHIELD's entire tech lab.

At least they were outside this time.

"It's ready, Darce." Jane screwed a final bolt into place, "We've calculated and re-calculated and triple checked everything. This will work, I can feel it."

Darcy turned her eyes to Bruce Banner. Out of all the members of their little work crew, she considered him to be the most logical, sane one. Considering how he occasionally turned into a giant green rage machine, that was really saying something.

"What do you say, Dr. B?" She asked him.

Bruce adjusted his glasses with a shrug, "The data is solid. I say we give it a try."

"So which poor sucker is going to try it out?" Darcy twirled her pen between her fingers, "And don't you dare look at me. I'm not the intern-slash-guinea-pig anymore."

"We're not sending a person, we're going to use this." Tony held up a small pot of yellow flowers. Mums or something. Darcy had never really been much of a gardener.

"Okay, but how do we know if the flowers make it to Asgard?" She questioned.

"We'll know because the new intern is waiting for them to arrive at exactly 11 o'clock." Tony could barely contain his grin.

"_New intern_?" Darcy questioned, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

"Think about it, Darcy." Tony deposited the flower pot on the ground before sticking a pair of goggles over his eyes and moving back from the machine, "Who do we know who can already travel to and from Asgard without the help of an Einstein Rosen bridge?"

"Oh, fuck." Darcy muttered, knowing exactly who he meant.

"Thirty seconds!" Bruce called, looking down at his watch, "Power it up."

Jane punched a series of buttons on the machine before hurriedly stepping away, slipping on a pair of safety glasses that had been tucked in the front pocket of her plaid shirt.

"Wait!" Darcy called over the growing whirring noise of the machine, "No one gave me any safety goggles! I'm not going blind in the name of science!"

She squeezed her eyes shut and turned her back to the machine, hoping that would offer her enough protection. The flash of light that came out of the machine was so bright, Darcy could see it even from behind her closed eyelids.

When the machine started to power down with a slow hum, Darcy cautiously turned around. She had no idea what to expect. Did it actually work?

"Oh my God!" Jane exclaimed, bouncing on her feet happily, "Look, it's gone!"

Sure enough, the flower pot had vanished.

"Now we just have to wait and see if the pot made it there in one piece." Bruce said, glancing at his watch again. "Should be any minute now."

It was almost ten minutes later before anything happened.

Darcy had gotten tired of standing around so she was currently sitting cross-legged in the grass, doodling on a blank page of her notebook.

When an explosive burst of light appeared out of nowhere, she nearly fell over in surprise.

"Fuck me. I think I know what a heart attack feels like now." She put her palm over her heart, trying to calm its frantic pounding.

When she looked up, she saw Loki looming over her. Tucked under his arm was the pot of yellow flowers.

"Isn't this a pleasant surprise." He grinned down at her.

Darcy quickly scrambled to her feet. She was _not _getting herself into any more embarrassing kneeling situations in front of him.

"You again." She gave him a once over, her eyes greedily sucking up every tiny detail. Damn, he had looked good in that suit at the cocktail party but this...

She tore her eyes away, hoping he wouldn't catch her staring. He was wearing a lighter form of his Asgardian gear; no jacket or armour but his standard leather pants, tall boots, and a dark green shirt.

Darcy briefly wondered if the leather of those pants was as buttery soft as it looked. She envisioned her fingers drifting over the material, unbuttoning the top clasp...

Okay, time to stop that train of thought. Think unsexy thoughts, like a pants-less Erik.

Ew.

Yep, that worked.

"No need to play shy, darling." One of Loki's fingers slid under her chin, forcing her to look up. "It's quite evident that you missed me."

Maybe it was the smug tone of his voice or the annoying fact that he was actually right, but either way, Darcy found herself pulling back her fist and clocking him right in the face.

Tony laughed for three days afterwards.

* * *

><p>The third time she saw Loki, he was saving her life.<p>

"I don't get paid enough for this shit!" Darcy shrieked as she ran down the hallway of the SHIELD compound. Alarms blared around her, a computerized voice announcing over and over again '_security breach...code alpha 325...security breach...code alpha 325..._'.

She had no idea what the hell was going on. A passing SHIELD agent had yelled at her to get out of the building, so that's what she was doing. Unfortunately, the labs were in a complicated maze-like wing of the compound which meant that getting out quickly would be a real bitch.

Darcy turned the corner sharply and kept running. The building was made up of a whole series of short, twisting corridors all grouped together to look like a honeycomb. Cool in design but absolutely impossible to navigate. She was no damn bee.

She stopped, briefly catching her breath and leaning against a closed office door. Shit, this hallway was starting to look familiar. Had she already come this way?

The sound of heavy footfalls and a loud, barking voice had her jerking forward away from the door. She didn't know if the person approaching her was a friend or a foe, and without her taser, she wasn't about to stick around and find out.

With renewed energy, Darcy flew down the hall. Left, right, another right, left...

She thought things were going well until she found herself skidding to a halt in front of a tall, burly bearded man (who was most definitely _not_ Thor). He wore heavy brown robes and when Darcy looked up at his face, she saw a dark, twisting dragon tattoo obscuring half his features.

He shouted something at her in a language she didn't understand, and then he was raising his arm and - oh _damn_. Darcy's blood ran cold. That was definitely a gun.

She backed away until she hit the wall behind her. Nowhere to go. No weapon. She was so screwed.

The man was still speaking thickly accented foreign words to her. Was it German, maybe? Darcy had no clue. She was more focused on the weapon that was steadily pointed at her forehead.

She debated fighting him and trying to get away, but the man was at least 200 pounds of solid muscle and the hard, resolute set of his face said that there was only one possible outcome for this situation. Darcy bit her lip and closed her eyes, hoping that whatever he did would be quick and painless.

She heard the sharp crack of the gun being fired. It made her ears ring and she was surprised by how different it sounded from the gunshots she'd only ever seen on TV or in the movies.

Wait a minute, shouldn't she be dead by now?

Cracking an eye open, Darcy saw nothing but black leather taking up her entire field of vision. Someone was standing in front of her, someone had _literally_ just taken a bullet for her, and that someone was extremely tall with dark hair and hands that glowed with magic.

Loki lifted his arm and made a quick, sweeping motion. The magic shot out of his hand like a whip, a thin string of bright golden light that struck Darcy's attacker clean across his throat.

The man clutched his neck, made an awful gurgling noise, and immediately dropped to the ground, his gun falling from his limp hand and skittering across the floor. Loki stepped forward, giving the man a solid kick in the ribs before he crushed the gun's barrel with the heel of his boot.

Overflowing with shock, adrenaline and relief, Darcy did the only logical thing she could think of: she threw herself at Loki and began to cry. This was no cute, girly sniffling either; she was full-on sobbing. It would have been embarrassing but she was just so damn relieved to be alive, Darcy didn't even care.

Loki awkwardly patted her back while she continued to bawl into his chest, her hands holding the lapels of his leather jacket in a death grip.

"Shhh, it's alright darling." Loki spoke into her ear quietly.

With a shaky breath, she pulled back and looked up into his face. "It's Darcy." Her voice cracked and she had to clear her throat before she could continue, "You just saved my life. I think it's about time you finally learned my name."

"Darcy." He tested her name on his tongue, drawing it out in a way that made her shiver.

Unconsciously, she pressed herself closer to him.

Loki flinched, stepping back to keep her at a distance.

"What...?" That's when Darcy noticed the dark red patch of blood on his stomach, staining his shirt. "You're bleeding! Oh God, the bullet!"

"I'm fine." Loki said, batting her hands away when Darcy tried to inspect the wound.

"You are so not fine. This is the very definition of not fine!" Darcy glared up at him, "You need a doctor!"

"All I require is a stiff drink and a small amount of time to heal." Loki pressed his hand to the gunshot wound, grimacing slightly.

Darcy sighed, shaking her head at how ridiculously stubborn he was.

"You know," she said, "that stiff drink does sound pretty good right now. C'mon, I'm buying."

* * *

><p>It was a long time before they met again. A year and a half, actually.<p>

Darcy was in Asgard for Thor and Jane's wedding. They had asked her to be their maid of honor. The _bäst kvinna_ as Thor had called it. Darcy would stick with 'maid of honor'. Way easier to pronounce.

She had been an anxious ball of nerves for days, hoping to run into Loki in the palace, but she never did see him. Darcy was dying to ask Thor if his brother was around but she refused to do so because asking about Loki would be admitting that she cared and she _so_ didn't care. Nope, she did not like him...she did not like him...she did not –

Aw, screw it.

She liked him.

It wasn't until the day of the wedding that she finally laid eyes on him.

He looked stupidly gorgeous in his formal Asgardian wear; all shining armour and black and green leather. When he saw her, the corner of his mouth pulled up into a satisfied half-smile.

"Darcy," his eyes roamed over her, studying her face and then briefly dipping down to her breasts. Darcy couldn't blame him though, her dress made her chest look pretty damn fabulous.

"It's been a while." She didn't know what else to say to him, especially since she last time she'd seen him, she'd been bawling into his shirt. That was kinda embarrassing.

"No further attempts have been made on your life, I hope."

So he clearly remembered their last meeting too. That knowledge really shouldn't have made Darcy as happy as it did.

"Nope." Darcy replied, "But I have learned how to shoot a gun since then. A little extra protection never hurts."

"Good girl." Loki grinned approvingly and an unexpected blush crept up Darcy's neck.

"So, you ready for this whole wedding deal?" Darcy looked around the ornate ballroom. The palace staff were bustling back and forth, adjusting giant flower arrangements and putting the final touches on the room before the ceremony began.

Loki raised his shoulder in a small shrug, "I am ready for it to end."

"Same here." Darcy quickly agreed, thinking of all the hours she'd spent helping Jane choose place settings and music and color schemes, "I spent three hours picking out napkins with Jane. Three hours! Why they even make napkins in a dozen different shades of white is beyond me."

Loki laughed. The noise was deep and rich and Darcy quickly decided that it was her new favorite sound.

Stepping close to her, Loki bent his head to whisper in her ear, "Perhaps after dinner we can have our own private celebration to commemorate the fact that our wedding duties have come to an end."

The way he whispered the suggestion was soft, silky, and full of unspoken promise. It made Darcy's breath catch in her chest. Hell yes, she wanted that.

"Okay," she said shakily, blinking up at him. God, he smelled good. Warm and minty and totally dizzying. She wanted to find out whether that scent was clinging to his clothing or if it was all over his skin.

It was hard for her to focus on the ceremony after that.

Darcy stood off to Jane's side as the bride and groom went through the various stages of their traditional Asgardian wedding ceremony. There was a part about drinking from cups, something to do with tying a ribbon, and now they were lighting candles.

She felt bad for not giving it her full attention but between Loki's offer and the way he kept staring at her throughout the ceremony, her mind was on other things. Very naughty other things that she probably shouldn't be thinking while standing so close to a religious altar.

Once the bride had been kissed, the wine had been uncorked, and everyone sat down to dine, Darcy found herself seated next to Loki at the head table. Jane was on her other side, followed by Thor, Frigga, and Odin.

"I've decided I shall give you a proper tour of the palace." Loki murmured as he leaned his body towards her, "Have you been shown the library?"

"I haven't," Darcy replied. God, his voice was more intoxicating than the contents of all the bottles of wine in the room. She needed to hear more; needed to keep him talking. "What else can you show me?"

She didn't realize how suggestive that sounded until Loki's eyes darkened, his gaze hot on her skin.

"I can show you plenty, darling." He winked at her and then straightened in his chair as their first course arrived.

There were six courses in total and Darcy could only nibble at each plate that was brought to her. Her stomach was too full of nervous excitement to leave much room for food.

When she had taken the last bite of her dessert, a delicious strawberry cake that was so light and fluffy it practically dissolved on her tongue, she pushed her plate away and leaned back in her chair.

"Do you guys eat like this all the time? How do you stay so skinny?" She asked Loki, resting her hands over her full stomach.

"Three courses is typical." Loki replied, reaching for his glass of wine, "Due to the festivities, tonight's meal has been slightly more elaborate."

As the tables were being cleared, fresh bottles of wine were brought out and music began to drift through the room.

"Shall we go before the drunken exploits begin?" Loki asked her, shaking his head when a servant approached and attempted to top up his wine.

"Totally." Darcy affirmed. She didn't want to get roped into dancing with some sweaty, inebriated warrior dude and there were currently plenty of them eyeballing the women in the room.

"Jane," Darcy leaned over and tapped her friend on the shoulder, raising her voice to be heard over the noise of music and laughter, "I'm gonna go get some air."

"Are you sure you don't want to stay for a dance?" Jane's eyes were sparkling with happiness. And probably wine. Lots of wine.

"Nah, I'm cool." Darcy shook her head, "Have fun, you crazy kids."

Jane nodded before she was pulled out of her seat by Thor and brought into the middle of the dance floor.

Darcy turned back to Loki, "Let's get out of here."

He grinned wickedly, capturing her hand in his and leading her out of the ballroom.

"How'd you know I would want to see the library?" Darcy asked as they strolled down an empty hallway. Loki was still holding her hand and neither of them had made a move to pull away.

"I can tell you have a thirst for knowledge so I assumed you are an avid reader." Loki stopped in front of a set of tall wooden double doors, looking down at her. "You are very bright."

Darcy stared at him, raising her eyebrows skeptically.

"What?" Loki asked, pushing the library doors open and allowing Darcy to enter first.

"Where's the 'for a mortal' part?" She asked as she stepped into the room, "Aren't you going to say that I'm pretty bright considering how I'm a mortal?"

Loki shook his head, closing the heavy doors behind them, "I do not detest mortals that much."

Darcy snorted, "Yeah right. You're not as great of a liar as you think you are, buddy."

"Darling, I am a god of lies and mischief. You question my very title?" Rather than looking offended, Loki was grinning at her in a way that made Darcy a little bit nervous but mainly really, really excited.

"Yeah, I do." She stood toe-to-toe with him now. Her eyes were level with the hollow of his throat so she had to crane her neck back to look up at his face. "Tell me a lie." She ordered, her voice coming out far softer than she meant for it to be.

Loki's gaze flickered over her face, finally coming to rest on her lips. "You wish to hear a lie?" He asked, his voice quiet. His hand brushed her neck, fingers sliding up to hold her chin as he brought his mouth down onto hers.

It was electric, Darcy thought, like a spark had passed between them. His mouth was hot and insistent against hers. He coaxed her lips open, deepening their kiss until Darcy moaned into his mouth. He tasted like the wine he'd been drinking; sweet with a hint of tartness.

She reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, pushing her body firmly against his. When she pulled her head back to take a few much needed breaths, Loki brought his lips down to the skin of her neck, sucking on it lightly.

"Here is your lie." His voice was ragged, "You disgust me. I do not desire you at all."

"Like I said," Darcy said as his hands traveled down her spine, quickly loosening the laces on the back of her dress, "horrible liar."

"Shall I tell you another?" Loki asked as he tugged her dress down over her hips.

"Yeah." Darcy pushed his jacket off his shoulders and began fumbling with the metal bracers strapped to his arms.

"I am not going to have you, here, in this room." Loki brought his hands up to help her, making quick work of the rest of the armour covering his upper body.

Darcy's body was on fire, blood humming through her veins, breath shallow and panting. "Fuck, hurry up." She pleaded as she tugged uselessly at the complicated series of snaps and buckles on his pants.

Loki unfastened them easily, stripping off both of their remaining clothing until they were bare.

For a moment, neither of them moved. They simply stood there, eyes greedily raking over each other's body.

Darcy was the first to act. She surged forward, eager to feel his skin against her own. Loki's arms found her waist, lifting her up until she wrapped her thighs around him. Darcy's hands slid across his back, feeling the way his muscles tensed and relaxed beneath his skin. She could sense just how much power he held, how deadly he could be. It probably should have scared her but it didn't.

"I...I don't have anything to, um..." Darcy said awkwardly, gesturing between them. Who'd have thought that she'd need to pack condoms for her trip to Asgard?

"It's alright, you are not at a fertile point in your cycle." Loki answered surely.

"Wait, what?" Darcy blinked at him, "How the hell can you tell–"

"Darcy," he cut her off with a slight roll of his eyes, "Do you really wish for me to stop to explain how extensive my magic is?" He pressed his erection firmly against her, letting her know just how much he didn't want to discontinue their current activity.

"Okay," Darcy panted, "But you are _so_ explaining that later."

"Anything you like." He murmured, his lips brushing against hers. He stepped forward until Darcy's back hit the bookcase behind her. "If you find this too uncomfortable there is a table we may use, but I would prefer to take you like this."

"This...this is good." Darcy confirmed, her voice faltering. Good God, she'd never be able to look at a library the same way again after this. Hell, she'd probably never be able to pick up a book without recalling the feeling of the bookcase pressing into her back and Loki's warm, hard body pressing against her front.

She felt him at her entrance, hot and ready, so she tilted her hips up in silent encouragement. She's been ready for this for way longer than she ever cared to admit.

Loki let out a low hiss of pleasure as he slid into her. When he spoke, he seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Darcy, "I have wanted to do this since I first saw you." His lips moved along her collarbone, "You were so outspoken, so enticing. I could not resist you."

Darcy moaned, tightening her legs around him as moved at a deep, steady pace, "So backtalk and stealing party snacks turns you on, huh?" She asked breathlessly.

"Everything about you is wildly alluring." Loki replied in a low, rough tone.

It was too much; the dark hunger of his gaze, the raw pleasure in his voice, the slow and sure way his body moved with hers. Darcy couldn't hold on any longer and with a sharp gasp, she came. Her eyes fluttered shut as she let her head fall back against the bookcase behind her.

"No, open your eyes." Loki commanded, "Look at me."

Darcy forced her eyes back open, blinking away her hazy vision until she could properly focus on his face. He was close, she could see it in the firm set of his mouth and the way his eyes glittered darkly.

She arched her back, bringing her body as close to his as possible, needing to feel the heat of him against her skin. She dragged her nails down his back and kissed him hard, her tongue sweeping into his mouth.

When their lips parted, Loki choked out her name, his head falling against her shoulder as he reached his release. His body shuddered against her and Darcy let out a soft hum of pleasure when she felt him pulse inside her.

"I officially take back all the complaints I made." She sighed contently when Loki began pressing hot kisses to the column of her neck, "This has been the best wedding ever."

It couldn't last, of course.

Darcy was only a guest of Jane's and a barely tolerated guest at that. Odin had made that much clear to her. So the morning after the wedding she was forced to pack her bags and say her goodbyes.

It felt weird to leave without Jane and her friend's absence was felt like a gaping hole in Darcy's chest. There was nothing she could do about it though. Jane was Asgardian royalty now. She had a new husband, a new title, and a new home.

So Darcy returned to Earth, Loki remained in Asgard, and life went on.

* * *

><p>Unknown to Darcy, the next time she and Loki crossed paths, it would be life changing.<p>

The day had started out normally enough. Good weather, a quick commute to work, and the fact that it was Friday instantly brightened Darcy's mood.

Since Jane had left behind her research in favour of becoming a space princess, Darcy had dealt with a few stressful weeks of not knowing whether she'd still have a job since she no longer had a boss. Luckily (or maybe unluckily?) Darcy knew too much for SHIELD to let her go, so a new position had been created for her at their New York branch. A position Darcy not-so-affectionately referred to as Data Lackey.

Her workdays were mainly comprised of filling out reports and cataloguing messy stacks of old data. Darcy didn't mind though, since it meant that she could pop in her earbuds and work without a ton of disturbances. She even got her own office. Okay, it was more like a small cubby in the basement, but still, it was hers.

Currently, she was settled at her desk, sipping coffee while organizing old lab reports in SHIELD's database.

That's when everything went to hell.

A sharp _ping_ noise came from her computer as an urgent memo flashed in the corner of her screen. Darcy frowned. She never got urgent memos. Hell, she hardly ever got emails, period. Clicking to open the message, her uneasiness quickly expanded into full-blown anxiety.

Attached to the memo was a series of photos highlighting some kind of helicarrier explosion in Washington.

Holy fuckballs, was that SHIELD headquarters?

Darcy pushed up her glasses and leaned forward in her chair, quickly scanning the text portion of the memo.

Stunned, she tried to absorb the information in front of her. SHIELD had been compromised. An organization called HYDRA had unknowingly grown right under their noses for decades. Director Fury was dead. The Triskelion was in shambles. Captain America was missing, presumed dead.

"_Fuck_." Darcy swore, quickly punching a series of keys on her laptop. She'd been taught exactly what to do if SHIELD was ever compromised, but she never thought this day would actually come.

She pulled up the Clean Slate software program and typed in her password. A countdown timer appeared on screen. Good, her entire hard drive would now be wiped out in two minutes.

Darcy grabbed her purse from where she'd slung it on the back of her chair. Looking around her office wildly, she snatched up anything that seemed important and tossed it in her bag. Her cell phone, ID badge, a handful of flash drives, and anything that had her name on it were unceremoniously shoved into her purse.

How many of those hidden HYDRA agents were right here in New York? Darcy didn't even want to stop and consider that. All she knew was that she had to get out of there right now.

When she poked her head out into the hallway, she was relieved to find it empty. Hoisting her purse up onto her shoulder, she set out down the deserted corridor. There was a fire exit just at the end of the hall. She could sneak out there and...and then what? She couldn't trust any of her SHIELD colleagues anymore. Couldn't call Fury. Couldn't ask Jane. What was she supposed to do? Where did she go?

A brief wave of panic overwhelmed her as Darcy realized that she was completely alone in this. She stopped, needing to close her eyes and take a few breaths to calm herself.

That was her mistake.

A set of arms closed around her and Darcy shrieked in surprise.

"Where d'you think you're going, sweetheart?" A rough male voice rasped.

Darcy instantly recognized that it belonged to Agent Andersen. He would occasionally swing by her office with an extra donut or her favorite cappuccino and the two of them would trade jokes, complain about the weather...normal stuff. She had actually considered him to be a friend.

The betrayal hurt more than she expected. Darcy held onto that feeling of hurt, letting it settle inside her until it turned into anger. Hurt was useless, but anger she could use.

"Get off, you fucking traitor scumbag." She growled.

The agent laughed and the sound made Darcy's skin crawl. "I'm not a traitor. You and I have the same goals, Darcy. We fight for peace and order in the world. The only difference is that HYDRA is willing to make the tough decisions. The necessary sacrifices. That's what makes us winners."

"Dude, there isn't enough time in the day for me to even start on how wrong you are." Darcy huffed, struggling in his grasp, "So let me make this quick: _fuck you_."

"It's not too late to join us. It would be a shame to kill you, we could use someone with your spunk." Andersen replied as if he hadn't even heard Darcy.

"I'd rather gouge my own eyeball out with a blunt fork." She deadpanned.

"It's your choice. Just know that there is no stopping us; we will prevail. Cut off one head and two more will grow in its place." Andersen leaned close, his breath sickeningly warm against her skin. "Hail HYDRA."

"Hail Captain America." Darcy retorted, quickly whipping her leg back and kicking the agent in the shin. It was enough to make him loosen his grasp and Darcy turned to face him, delivering a hard kick in his groin that brought him to his knees.

For good measure, she delivered another kick to his privates before she took off down the hall at a dead run. She ran straight into the emergency exit door, throwing her weight against the push bar. The door swung open violently, hinges squeaking in protest.

In the time that Andersen had been blabbing HYDRA nonsense at her, Darcy had formulated a plan. Granted, it wasn't much of a plan. It was more like crossing her fingers and hoping for the best, but right now, that was all she had.

The minute she was outdoors, Darcy threw back her head, squinting in the bright midday sun. With a deep breath, she opened her mouth and screamed at the sky.

"Heimdall! If you can hear me, I really need your help!"

Darcy waited.

Nothing happened.

A sinking feeling was starting to settle low in her stomach. Of course no one was coming. It had been a stupid plan to begin with.

With a sigh, Darcy resigned herself to the fact that she would need to work on a new plan of escape. She had to get away from SHIELD, away from New York, but she was no Black Widow. She couldn't just become invisible and disappear into another country. Darcy had no idea how to even get across the border without using her passport-

"Holy shit!"

Her worrying was interrupted by a blinding column of light that exploded out of the sky. Darcy stumbled backwards, shielding her eyes with her arm. Being the totally graceful lady that she was, she tripped over her own feet, lost her balance, and landed on her ass on the pavement.

Dazed, Darcy looked up just as the last of the bright light was fading away, leaving the silhouette of a person in its place. A slow grin spread across her face when she realized who was standing over her. "We've got to stop meeting like this."

Evidently, Loki was not in a joking mood. He hauled her to her feet, picked her purse up off the ground, and shoved it into her arms. "Prepare to teleport." His voice was stern, matching the tense look on his face.

"Woah, what? Can you explain before you-hey, stop that!" She batted his arms away when he tried to grab her around the waist. "You can't just kidnap me without an explanation!"

Loki let out an irritated groan, reaching up to run a hand through his dark hair, "You are not safe here, Darcy. I am taking you to Asgard immediately. You asked for help, did you not?"

"So Heimdall really heard me?" She asked, looking up at the sky with wonder.

"Indeed. He alerted me to your call for assistance." Loki confirmed, "Now hurry_._"

"Alright, alright." Darcy swung her purse over her shoulder, "But first can I-"

"No."

"I just need to-"

"No."

"It'll only take a second-"

"_Darcy._"

"Ugh, fine. I'll just go to Asgard with nothing." Darcy muttered to herself, "It's not like I need clothes, my toothbrush, clean panties..."

"I assure you," Loki spoke impatiently, "everything you require will be awaiting you on Asgard."

"Really?" Darcy quirked an eyebrow, "Do you have a docking station for my iPod? Pop Tarts? All the Die Hard movies?"

"I will magic all of that for you." Loki assured her, grinding his teeth with barely contained frustration, "Now. Come. Here."

Darcy stepped into his open arms, "Do you even know what Die Hard is?" She questioned skeptically.

"No, though I am certain that you plan to enlighten me." Loki muttered before they were engulfed in the lights of the Bifrost.

Darcy stumbled when her feet finally hit Asgardian soil and Loki's arm around her waist was the only thing that kept her upright.

"Heimdall!" She waved when she noticed the Bifrost's guardian standing off to the side of the room, gazing out a large circular window. "Thanks, man. I owe you one."

"My pleasure, Miss Lewis." Heimdall nodded his head in greeting before he returned his attention to the window, eyes keenly keeping watch over the realms.

"Can I see Jane?" Darcy immediately asked Loki when they stepped out onto the Rainbow Bridge.

"The _princess_ is otherwise engaged at the moment." Loki answered, guiding her towards a large, dark horse tethered nearby.

Darcy didn't miss the way his tone grew cool when he spoke about Jane. She frowned, "Will she be free soon?"

Loki made a noncommittal noise as he started fussing with the horse's reigns and Darcy quickly decided that asking him for any more information about her friend would be totally pointless.

"Alright, ladies first." Loki motioned for her to mount the horse.

"Uhhh..." Darcy looked up at the 900 pounds of equestrian muscle in front of her. "Yeah, that's not gonna happen."

Loki sighed and muttered something foreign under his breath, "Put your foot in the stirrup, I will help you with the rest."

The stirrup was nearly even with her waist and it took Darcy three tries to get her foot up high enough to slip it into place. She let out an embarrassing little squeak when, unannounced, Loki gripped her hips and lifted her up onto the horse's back. In one easy, fluid motion he mounted the horse and sat in front of her.

"Show off." Darcy muttered.

Loki flashed her a quick grin over his shoulder, "Hold on." He snapped the reigns and the horse took off.

The ride into the city was quick. Once Darcy had managed to dismount (which mainly involved her falling and elbowing Loki in the face as he tried to catch her), Loki passed off the reigns to a stable attendant before leading Darcy into the palace.

"Still as swanky as ever." Darcy commented as she took in all the ornate carved stone surrounding her. "So is Big Daddy Odin going to be okay with me staying here?"

"Probably not." Loki responded rather bluntly. He laid his hand on Darcy's lower back, gently directing her down the hall, "Though there is one way to ensure that he cannot force you to leave."

"Oh? What's that?" Darcy asked, only half paying attention as she rubbed the side of her sore hip. The pain of their horseback ride was slowly starting to settle in her muscles. Ouch.

"Marry me."

"_What?_" Darcy stopped dead in her tracks, looking up at Loki with wide eyes.

"If you are my wife, Odin cannot banish you from Asgard." Loki explained as casually as if he were talking about the weather.

"You...did you just..._what_?" Darcy asked again. There was no possible way she'd heard him correctly.

Loki tilted his head, giving her an exasperated look, "Do you have a piece of metal on you?"

"For the record, I don't understand any of this conversation." Darcy stuck a hand into her purse and pulled out a random handful of loose change. She handed Loki a quarter. "Will this work?"

"It will suffice." Loki held his hand out flat and set the quarter in the middle of his palm. In the next second, the quarter shimmered into a small, silver band. "There," he held it out to Darcy, "now you have an engagement ring."

"This is ridiculous, Loki." Darcy crossed her arms, refusing to take the ring from him.

"More ridiculous than returning to Midgard as a wanted fugitive?" Loki raised an eyebrow.

Darcy groaned, hating the fact that he was right. If she were to go back now, she would probably be arrested on suspicion of being a double agent. Of course, that was assuming that Andersen or some other HYDRA member didn't track her down and kill her first.

"God, I can't believe I'm even considering this. We'd kill each other, you know." She chewed her lip in contemplation.

"Perhaps." Loki acknowledged, "You do have a tendency to be quite irritating." He stepped close to her, bending his head to whisper lowly into her ear, "Though if I recall correctly, we rather enjoyed each other's company during your last visit to Asgard."

Darcy flushed. The memory of that night in the library was still incredibly vivid in her mind. "Okay." She finally relented, "But I want a proper proposal so get kneeling, mister."

Loki exhaled loudly but did as she asked and dropped down onto one knee. "Darcy," he said rather impatiently, "will you marry me?"

"Nope." Darcy shook her head. "You can do better than that. Come on, say it like you mean it."

A muscle in Loki's jaw ticked, "Darcy," he said again, his voice softer but laced with a hint of sarcasm, "will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

It was the best she'd get out of him, Darcy decided. "I do, er, I will. I guess the 'I do' doesn't actually come until later."

Their eyes met as Loki slipped the silver band onto her finger. His expression was unreadable and Darcy would have given anything to know what was going on inside his head.

After the ring was in place, Loki returned to his full height but his hand lingered on hers, the pad of his thumb skimming over her skin. Darcy hoped he didn't notice the way her breath hitched at the contact.

"Do you think we can make this work?" She asked quietly. She wasn't quite sure if she was talking about their plan to keep her on Asgard or their actual marriage. Either way, she felt like she needed some reassurance.

"That I do not know," the corner of Loki's mouth pulled up into a small half-smile, "but I look forward to finding out."

* * *

><p>.<p>

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I think this has a lot of potential to become multi-chapter, so if you'd like to read more please let me know!


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed, and faved this story! I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint. I'm not planning to add any more to this right now but who knows, I might gradually add more chapters whenever I get a new idea. Thanks for reading!

* * *

><p>Darcy couldn't stop staring at her hand. The engagement ring wasn't heavy or awkward; in fact, it fit her perfectly. Almost as if it should have been on her finger all along. That's what really weirded her out.<p>

She twisted the silver band around her finger as Loki led her through the palace towards the sleeping quarters.

Darcy hadn't realized how bone-tired she was until he had suggested that she get some rest. Then again, she supposed escaping a HYDRA maniac, being beamed up to Asgard, and getting engaged to a freaking _space god_ all in one day was a lot for anyone to handle.

"Since you didn't let me stop at my apartment, you'd better magic me up some comfy pj's and my favorite peppermint toothpaste." Darcy grumbled tiredly as she followed her new fiancée down the hall.

Loki failed to contain his sigh of annoyance, "Your life was in danger, Darcy. Forgive me if I didn't think it necessary to waste time pawing through your measly possessions in the dingy shoebox you called an apartment."

"Rude!" Darcy exclaimed, "That _dingy shoebox_ was my home." She'd spent a lot of time (and a considerable amount of her SHIELD paychecks) decorating the apartment to suit her taste, and despite its small size, she was proud of the little home she'd created.

Loki's blithe comment had her blood boiling and Darcy found herself clenching her jaw until she thought the bone would crack, "God, I really want to punch you right now."

Loki stopped, raising his eyebrows as he glanced over at her, "Showing restraint? How novel."

"If you don't shut up..." Darcy started, pointing her finger in his face.

"Please," Loki drawled, crossing his arms over his chest in a relaxed manner, "do continue. I look forward to hearing exactly what threats a mortal girl could possibly make against a God."

"Five minutes," Darcy announced, throwing her hands up in pure exasperation. "We lasted five minutes as an engaged couple and now I'm gonna murder you."

Loki bent his head until his face was level with hers. "At this point, I would welcome death," he hissed.

Darcy snorted, "You're such a drama queen."

"I'm dramatic? I am not the one threatening murder." Loki retorted. He made a small _hmph_ noise as he looked away from her.

Darcy opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by the sound of a feminine voice calling Loki's name.

Loki swore under his breath. "My mother," he whispered to Darcy. "While you are in her presence, perhaps you could at least _try_ to act like you love me?"

"Only if you stop acting like a gigantic asswipe." Darcy muttered as the Queen approached them.

"Loki," Frigga gently chastised, "You did not tell me we would be having company." She turned to Darcy, a radiant smile stretching across her face, "Darcy Lewis. How are you, my dear?"

"Hi, Your Highness." Darcy grinned. She had immediately liked Frigga from the moment they met during Jane and Thor's wedding. Any woman who could silence both Thor and Loki with a single look earned major cool points in Darcy's books.

"Please, there's no need to be formal. Just Frigga will do." The Queen replied kindly, "What brings you to Asgard, Darcy?"

"Uhhh..." Darcy looked to Loki, unsure of what to say.

"Darcy had encountered some trouble on Midgard." Loki saved her from answering, "I thought it best to bring her here."

"I'm kind of a fugitive," Darcy added, "but I swear I'm totally innocent."

"Of course." Frigga nodded as if the situation weren't at all unusual. She tilted her head, looking at Darcy curiously, "By chance, would your fugitive status have anything to do with the ring you wear?"

Darcy's eyes shot down to her silver band and she instinctively hid her hand behind her back. "That's...um..." She cleared her throat, feeling a blush creep onto her cheeks.

"Darcy and I are to be wed." Loki confirmed, slipping his arm around Darcy's waist.

"Yeah...that." Darcy's face grew a hundred degrees warmer when Loki pulled her against his side.

Frigga's eyes lit up with excitement, "How wonderful!" She lowered her voice and gave them a slightly conspiratorial look, "Though I cannot say I am truly surprised."

All Darcy could do was blink, feeling a bit like a deer caught in the headlights.

She and Loki must have been wearing identical shocked expressions because Frigga began to laugh, "Oh, come now. I saw the way you acted around each other during Thor and Jane's wedding. A mother always sees these things." She said slyly.

"Yes, well..." Loki rubbed his jaw, looking slightly embarrassed, and Darcy mentally added an extra thousand cool points to Frigga's total. She'd never seen anyone leave Loki speechless before.

"You must be exhausted from your travels, Darcy. I didn't mean to keep you from your rest." Frigga said. She turned to Loki, giving him a half-stern look, "If my son had informed me sooner that his lovely fiancée would be visiting us, I would have properly prepared a guest room. I'm afraid all the spare linens have been sent out for cleaning. You will have to share Loki's chambers, though I'm sure that won't be a problem given your newly engaged status."

Darcy's eyes went wide. Sharing a room with Loki? God, that could only end in disaster.

Evidently, Loki was thinking the same thing. "Mother," his voice was almost pleading, "Darcy and I are not yet wed. It would be indecent for us to share a bed."

"Then you can sleep on the floor." The Queen replied shortly.

Darcy pressed her lips together tightly, trying to hold back a laugh. Oh yeah, she definitely liked Frigga.

"In any event, I am sure you two will work out suitable arrangements. Good night, Darcy, Loki." Frigga gave Darcy a fond smile before she lightly kissed her son on the cheek and continued down the hall.

A beat of silence passed before Darcy uttered a single word. "Damn."

Loki sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "Damn indeed."

* * *

><p>"It's only a bed, Darcy. It will not bite."<p>

"Give me a minute! Don't rush me."

"It's a mattress. You lay on it. Honestly, must I draw you a diagram?"

"Give. Me. A. Minute." Darcy ground out, standing beside Loki's bed with her arms crossed firmly over her chest. Okay, this was no big deal, right? Just pull back the duvet...

"Really, Loki? Black satin sheets?" Darcy shot him an unimpressed look while Loki simply shrugged in return. "Gross. I am not getting into your nasty sexed-up pervert bed."

"I assure you, Darcy." Loki rubbed his forehead tiredly, "I have not had intercourse on those sheets."

"_Riiiiight_." Darcy said dryly.

"If you prefer, you may sleep on the chaise." Loki gestured to the plush lounge chair in the corner of the room.

"No way," Darcy shook her head, "I'm a guest, I deserve the bed. You take the chair."

"I am far too tall for it. You are better suited for the chair." Loki argued.

Darcy blew out a slow breath, trying to reign in her temper. "This is stupid. We're both adults and your mattress is gigantic. Like, I'm pretty sure there are European countries smaller than this bed." She glanced up at Loki hesitantly, "We can share...right?"

"Given our engagement, I suppose it would look suspicious if someone were to find us willingly sleeping apart." Loki reluctantly admitted.

"Okay then." Darcy gingerly pulled back the blankets and crawled in, trying not to shiver when the cool satin touched her skin. She had already coerced Loki into using his magic to create her a pair of boxer-style shorts and a matching shirt she could sleep in. Darcy had wanted them to be purple but the stubborn ass had made them green instead.

"I'm going to wash up." Loki muttered before crossing the room and shutting himself in the large ensuite washroom.

As soon as the door shut behind him, Darcy relaxed against her pillow, letting out a sigh. She tried to tell herself that she had no reason to feel so awkward and nervous around him. They had been flirting back and forth with each other for ages. Hell, they'd even skipped out on Thor and Jane's wedding reception so they could have crazy-awesome library sex (her new favorite kind of sex). For some reason though, things felt different now. More real. Like maybe their marriage wasn't just being faked for Darcy's sake. Maybe there were real feelings involved.

Darcy twisted under the sheets, turning to lay on her side and bury her face in her pillow. It smelled like Loki, which wasn't really helping matters any.

She had almost drifted off to sleep when she heard the washroom door open, followed by the sound of Loki's footsteps on the stone floor.

That was when Darcy made a horrible mistake.

She never should have opened her eyes because when she did, she found Loki standing beside the bed watching her. He was shirtless, wearing only a pair of thin linen pants that sat low on his lips. The sight made her mouth dry and her skin flush.

"Do you mind if I dim the lights?" Loki asked, pulling back the sheets on his side of the bed.

Surprised by his sudden politeness, Darcy nodded wordlessly as he used his magic to extinguish all the lights until only a lone candle flame burned on his bedside table.

As he slid into bed, Darcy found herself holding her breath, afraid to make any sudden movements. Her leg was starting to cramp but she refused to move from her curled-up position. There was currently a foot of space between them and she was damn well going to keep it that way.

Loki settled onto his back, looking just as rigid and uncomfortable as Darcy felt.

"Is this weird? It feels like we're making it weird but it really doesn't need to be. I mean, there's nothing wrong with two people sharing a bed, right?" Darcy babbled, twisting a handful of the blankets between her fingers. Her silver engagement ring stood out boldly against the black sheets and the sight made her stomach do a funny flip.

"Darcy," Loki muttered tiredly, "Do shut up."

"Right. Shutting up now." Darcy chewed her lower lip, her eyes moving over his profile outlined by the weak candle light. "Okay, first I just have one question. Do you always sleep like that?" She asked, waving her hand towards his naked chest.

Loki continued to stare at the ceiling. "No," he replied, his gaze slowly sliding over until he was looking at her out of the corner of his eye, "I usually sleep in the nude." He grinned.

"Of course you do." Darcy flopped onto her back with a huff, mirroring Loki as she looked up at the ceiling, watching shadows dance across the stone as the candle light flickered.

She heard the sheets rustle and then Loki was propped up on his elbow, looking down at her. "Does it bother you?" He asked quietly.

"No." Darcy lied, trying not to stare at the pale expanse of his chest. Or the way his bicep flexed as he leaned over her. Or the way his hair fell forward into his eyes. Damn, this was going to be a long night. "Anyway," she continued, clearing her throat, "it's nothing I haven't seen before."

Loki made a small noise in his throat, like he didn't quite believe her. His eyes roamed over her face, moving from the curve of her neck to her eyes and then shifting down to her lips.

Darcy felt her heartbeat pick up speed. His gaze was still fixed on her mouth and in response, she found herself lifting her chin. It was a small, almost imperceptible movement, but Loki noticed it.

His eyes instantly darkened and he let out a slow, deep exhale. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse, "If I kiss you now, I will not be able to stop."

At the raw tone of his voice, Darcy's whole body flooded with heat. Her skin felt tingly, like it was anxiously anticipating his touch.

"Maybe I wouldn't want you to stop." She whispered.

Loki lowered his head until their noses brushed and their breaths mingled together. They were so achingly close, Darcy thought as she stared into his eyes, she just had to tilt her head up a little more...

There was a loud, sharp knock at the door and the moment was broken.

Loki groaned, quickly rolling off the bed and stalking across the room to throw open the door.

"What?" He growled.

A servant was on the other side, looking up at Loki with wide eyes. Stammering, she held out a pile of clothing and a small woven basket holding shampoos, a hairbrush and other personal items. "Queen Frigga wished for these to be brought to Lady Darcy."

Without a word, Loki snatched the items from her hands and let the door slam shut. "I will leave these for you here." He told Darcy, letting the pile of things drop onto the old trunk at the foot of his bed.

When he crawled back into bed, Darcy could almost feel the annoyance radiating off him in waves. She had to admit, at the moment she wasn't too fond of that servant either. Talk about an epic mood killer.

Loki turned his back to Darcy, lying on the very edge of the mattress like she had some infectious disease and he was afraid of getting too close. The last candle flickered out and the room grew completely dark.

After a few moments of silence, Loki's quiet voice filtered through the darkness. "Good night, Darcy." He sounded almost apologetic. Whether he was sorry for the interruption or his frosty attitude, Darcy didn't know.

"Night, Loki." She murmured in return.

She wasn't sure why she did it, but Darcy found herself slowly stretching her arm across the empty expanse of mattress until her fingers found his skin. She let the palm of her hand rest lightly on the back of Loki's shoulder blade, feeling the heat of his body seep into her own skin. At first, Loki tensed under her touch but then his body relaxed as he let out a small, tired sigh.

He felt so warm and solid lying next to her, it gave Darcy the sudden urge to close the space between them and wrap herself around his body. She pushed the feeling away, instead focusing on the slow, even sounds of Loki's breathing. Eventually, it was enough to lull her to sleep.

* * *

><p>Darcy Lewis was not a morning person.<p>

She was even less of a morning person when her wake-up call came in the form of nearly being squashed by the dead weight of her soon to be husband.

At some point during the night, she and Loki had both gravitated towards the centre of the bed and the God's full weight was currently draped over her. Actually, half-suffocating her was more like it.

"Off." Darcy groaned sleepily, pushing on his shoulder.

"Your breath is horrid." Loki mumbled as he slowly blinked awake.

"Your face is horrid." Darcy replied, giving him one last shove before he finally rolled over onto his side of the bed. "God, I hope you have coffee here. I feel like I need a direct IV of it this morning."

Loki frowned. "That brown sludge you Midgardians are so fond of? We have none of that."

Darcy buried her face in her pillow and let out a long whine. "This sucks. I had a brand new can of French roast at home. If you had just let me stop at my apartment for two seconds-"

"You are never going to get over that, are you?" Loki cut in with an eye roll.

"Never." Darcy vowed, "I'm gonna put it on my tomb stone. 'Darcy Lewis: taken from her apartment too soon. You suck, Loki'."

"Seems excessively wordy." Loki commented.

"Your face is excessively wordy."

"That doesn't even make sense."

"I know. This is me without coffee. My brain is slowly turning into mush." Stifling a yawn, Darcy reached up over her head and stretched out her spine.

When she dropped her arms and looked over at Loki, she realized that the jerk had inched his way back over to her side of the bed. Lying with their bodies only inches apart, they seemed almost like a real couple, Darcy thought. Except instead of cute morning pillow talk, they were hurling insults at each other.

"Get dressed." Loki sat up, yanking most of Darcy's blankets with him. She shot him an annoyed look which he completely ignored. "My mother is fond of her herbal tea. That will have to do in place of your beloved coffee. I will fetch you a cup."

As he slid his legs off the bed and stood, Darcy had a very hard time pulling her focus away from his bare, muscular back. Finally, she registered what he said and blinked up at him with surprise. "You're going to make me tea?"

"Just this once." Loki replied over his shoulder as he headed for the washroom. "Do not get used to it."

* * *

><p>The funny thing was, it wasn't just that once.<p>

On Darcy's third morning in Asgard, it was becoming obvious that she and Loki were falling into a routine: go to sleep on opposite sides of the bed, wake up tangled together, then pull away from each other with a few awkward, mumbled apologies. Darcy would then take a bath while Loki went off and did whatever it was that he did when she wasn't 'hovering over him like an annoying insect' (his words, not hers). When Darcy would emerge from the washroom, there would always be a hot cup of tea waiting for her on the nightstand.

She had to admit, she was enjoying her stay on Asgard. Her only problem was that the Asgardian lifestyle didn't seem to agree much with her.

It all started on that third morning when, over breakfast with Loki and Frigga, Darcy announced, "I don't want to be a freeloader. What can I do around here to help out?"

"That's very kind of you, Darcy," the Queen replied, "but you needn't do a thing. You are about to become royalty soon, we cannot put you to work."

Darcy shrugged, pushing up her glasses, "Bumming around in the library and the garden is great and all, but I want to feel useful."

"Very well," Frigga smiled, "perhaps you would like to join me this morning in the weaving room?"

Loki made a choked noise that sounded suspiciously like he was trying not to laugh.

"What?" Darcy narrowed her eyes at him as she stabbed her fork into a piece of fruit.

"Weaving is a very delicate art." Loki explained, "And you are..."

"Be careful how you finish that sentence." Darcy threatened, pointing her fork at him.

"I was simply going to say that you are still rather unfamiliar with the customs of Asgard." Loki gave her an innocent look.

It was total bullshit in Darcy's opinion, so she kicked him under the table.

Loki glared at her, "You..." he quickly softened his tone when he saw Frigga watching him, "will do fine. I have no doubt of that." He leaned towards Darcy, pressing a quick kiss to her temple.

She knew he was just putting on a show for his mother but the action still caused Darcy's stomach to do a little flip-flop.

"You just wait," she told him, "I'm gonna weave you a fucking masterpiece."

* * *

><p>She really hated it when Loki was right.<p>

With a sigh, Darcy blew her hair out of her eyes and held up her embroidery hoop, eyeing it critically.

Weaving had been a total disaster (two of Frigga's ladies-in-waiting were still trying to untangle Darcy's giant mess of yarn) so Frigga had very gently suggested that Darcy might find herself better suited to needlepoint. Unfortunately, Darcy didn't have much luck with that either and she wound up stabbing herself with the needle more often than the fabric.

Finally, four torturous hours, one stiff back, and ten sore fingertips later, Darcy had finished stitching a weird little blob-like bouquet of flowers.

"It's...a valiant effort." Frigga gave her an encouraging smile.

"Ugh, I suck." Darcy let her head fall back until it thunked against the headrest of her chair.

Frigga shook her head. "I think the problem is that you are too clever for this type of work, you need something more mentally stimulating." She took a seat in the chair beside Darcy. "Loki tells me that you attended a college on Midgard, studying politics. That is quite an impressive feat. Aesir women don't often have such a high education."

Darcy blushed under the Queen's gaze. "Loki talks about me?"

"Of course," Frigga sounded surprised that Darcy would ever question Loki's affection. "He is very taken with you." She laid her hand over Darcy's, "I worry over Loki," she admitted softly. "He and Thor are so different, like night and day. Loki has always struggled to fit in, struggled to find happiness, and as his mother, it breaks my heart to see him like that. So I am truly glad that he has finally found happiness with you, Darcy."

Darcy swallowed the growing lump of emotion in her throat. Oh, she knew all about feeling like the outcast. Growing up, she'd been the girl who preferred bikes over Barbie dolls and sports over dresses. Even when she started her internship with Jane, Darcy had felt like the odd one out while Jane and Erik carried on conversations about wormholes and atmospheric anomalies, like they were speaking some foreign sciencey language that Darcy couldn't ever hope to comprehend.

She didn't really know what to say, so Darcy settled for squeezing Frigga's hand reassuringly. "Don't worry." The words left her mouth before Darcy fully realized what she was saying, "I'll take care of him."

* * *

><p>"I've got a surprise for you..." Darcy said in a sing-song voice that night as she and Loki were getting ready for bed.<p>

The look Loki gave her was wary and more than a little fearful.

"Oh, stop." Darcy rolled her eyes at him, "It's nothing bad. Here." She pulled her embroidery hoop from behind her back and handed it to him.

Loki held up the needlepoint, squinting at it. "Is this supposed to be a bird?"

"They're flowers!" Darcy exclaimed. "What do you think?"

Loki was silent as he studied the wonky mash-up of stitches. "I think you need to re-evaluate your definition of 'bad'." He finally answered. "This is quite possibly the ugliest thing I have ever had the displeasure of laying eyes on."

Darcy felt a hot surge of anger flash through her. _Four fucking hours_ she'd spent on that stupid needlepoint. She had literally put her blood, sweat, and tears into it.

"Okay, you know what?" Darcy planted her hands on her hips as she glared at him, "Fuck you, Loki. I tried to make something nice and you just shit all over my hard work."

"I tried to tell you that you would find it difficult," Loki replied, his voice growing sharp with irritation. "If you had just listened to me you would not have wasted your efforts on this..._thing_." He looked down at the needlepoint with a frown.

Darcy snatched the embroidery hoop out of his hands, "Are you expecting me to apologize because I didn't just blindly follow orders and listen to everything you say?"

"No, but a thank you would be nice." Loki replied snidely, "Seeing as how I went out of my way to bring you to Asgard and devise a plan to ensure that you would not be forced to leave."

"Sounds an awful lot like you're calling me ungrateful." Darcy kept her voice neutral but her eyes were sharp as she met Loki's gaze.

"As a matter of fact, I am." Loki retorted, "You are quite possibly the most unappreciative, stubborn woman I have ever met."

Oh, now it was on.

"Well, _asshole, _did you ever stop to think that maybe this is hard for me?" Darcy fired back. "My career with SHIELD has gone down the toilet. Hell, my _entire life_ as I knew it is over! I can't go back to Earth, but I also don't belong here." She held up her sad attempt at needlepoint. "I think that's pretty obvious. I tried to fit in with all your fancy Asgardian ladies but I just _can't_." Her voice cracked on the last word and much to her embarrassment, Darcy found herself blinking back a sudden onslaught of hot tears.

"Darcy," Loki said her name softly, the anger draining out of him as he stepped forward to touch her arm.

"Don't." She shook off his touch, taking a deep, steadying breath before looking up at him through blurry eyes. She quickly swiped her hand under each eye, brushing away any tears before they had a chance to fall. "I think you should find somewhere else to sleep tonight."

"Darcy-"

"Find somewhere else to sleep," Darcy cut him off. Whatever he was about to say, she wasn't in the mood to hear it, "I don't really want to be around you right now."

Loki opened his mouth but then closed it, shaking his head. In three long strides he was gone, the door slamming loudly behind him.

The sudden silence was heavy and Darcy could almost feel it sitting on her chest like a lead weight. She stared down at the needlepoint in her hands before she pulled her arm back and threw it at the wall with all her strength. It hit the stone with a harmless clunk before falling to the floor.

As she crawled into the big empty bed, Darcy looked down at the engagement ring on her finger. It seemed extra shiny, glaring at her like a guilt-inducing reminder of all that Loki had done for her. She quickly shoved her hand under her pillow so she wouldn't have to look at it. Then she closed her eyes and tried not to think about her earlier conversation with Frigga. It didn't work, and Darcy fell into an uneasy sleep consumed by thoughts of Loki, finding happiness, and broken promises.

When she woke up the next morning, there was a fresh cup of tea on her nightstand and her needlepoint had been carefully hung on the wall.

* * *

><p>Despite Loki's unspoken apology, Darcy still did her best to avoid him the next day. Hanging her needlepoint in his room had been a sweet gesture, but she was still feeling moody. She wanted to wallow in self-pity for just a little longer.<p>

So she slept late, took an extra long bath, and then finally snuck down to the dining hall when she was certain that Loki would be long gone. Darcy loaded up a plate with cheeses, bread and fruit before taking her breakfast with her to the library where she sat on the floor in a secluded corner, picking at her food and leafing through a book.

Going to the library had probably been a mistake. Any time she set foot in the room Darcy was reminded of that night of hot, hurried sex with Loki. The bookshelf had given her a bruise on her back for about a week afterward but Darcy hadn't minded. In fact, she wore it almost like a badge of pride. Any time she caught sight of the bruising in the mirror she'd grin, remembering the look of pure pleasure on Loki's face and the low tone of his voice as he'd whispered how much he wanted her.

Damn, now she really wanted to see him.

Darcy popped a piece of cheese into her mouth and chewed, wondering if maybe she just could eat away all her problems. Or at least drown them in cheese and fluffy fresh bread.

As if he'd known that she was thinking about him, Loki suddenly materialized out of thin air right in front of her.

Darcy choked on her mouthful of food, coughing until she managed to clear her airway. "Dammit, Loki. Don't do that."

"Did I frighten you?" Loki frowned down at her.

"Not at all," Darcy responded sarcastically, wheezing a little as she caught her breath."I was totally expecting you to just pop out of nowhere like a freaky-ass ghost."

"Sorry." He said quietly as he continued to stand over her.

Darcy rolled her eyes, "Oh for God's sake. C'mon, sit." She patted the floor beside her. "You're looking more awkward than the time Jane ordered Chinese and Thor insisted on using the chopsticks. Remind me to tell you that story sometime. It's hilarious."

Loki settled onto the floor next to her, stretching out his long legs and crossing them at the ankles. The position accentuated just how tall and lean he was, and Darcy had to fight the urge to crawl right into his lap. Instead, she forced her eyes back to her plate and tore off a chunk of bread, shoving it in her mouth.

"How'd you know where to find me?" She asked once she'd swallowed.

Loki's gaze dropped down to her hand, "Your ring. It holds traces of my magic that allow me to sense its location."

"So you basically tricked me into wearing a GPS." She said bluntly.

Loki shifted uncomfortably, "That was not my intention. It was simply a means to keep you safe. You do have a rather astounding tendency to get yourself into trouble."

Darcy opened her mouth to argue but then snapped it shut. Okay, so maybe there had been that one time she'd almost been shot...and now there was the whole HYDRA situation...

If she was completely honest with herself, both events would have likely gotten her killed if Loki hadn't intervened.

"Fair enough." She leaned back against the bookshelf and resumed picking at her food.

Loki didn't say anything as she continued to eat so after her next mouthful of bread, Darcy broke the silence, "So did you come here to actually _say_ anything or are you just gonna stare at me?"

Loki appeared to be deep in thought, his eyebrows drawn together as he watched her. "You do, you know."

"Do what?" Darcy asked, confused.

"Belong here." Loki replied as he caught her gaze. His eyes were dark, a shimmering mix of deep blue-green that seemed to pin Darcy in place. "Last night, when you said you do not belong on Asgard, you were wrong."

"Why's that?" Darcy had to remind herself to breathe. The way he was looking at her...it was seriously messing with her mental faculties.

"You have too much spirit to be confined to a boring, simple life on Midgard. You are meant for greater things." Loki leaned towards her until Darcy could feel his warm breath on her cheek.

"Like 'Supreme Ruler of the 37 Realms'?" She questioned weakly, trying unsuccessfully to tear her eyes away from his mouth. "Kinda has a nice ring to it."

Loki shook his head, smiling slightly. "There are only nine realms Darcy, and may the Gods have mercy on all of us if you are to ever rule them."

"Hey!" Darcy protested, "I'd do an awesome job and you know it."

"You will be Asgardian royalty soon enough." Loki murmured quietly. He reached for her hand and rubbed his thumb across her engagement ring. "That is, assuming I have not ruined things beyond repair. I seem to be rather good at that." He released her hand and looked away, a pained expression crossing his face.

Aw, damn it. Darcy couldn't deal with Sad Puppy Loki.

She put her hand on the side of his jaw, gently forcing him to turn his head back towards her. "It's not entirely your fault. I was frustrated and I took it out on you. I shouldn't have done that."

Under the palm of her hand she felt him swallow and when he spoke, his voice was hoarse. "I'm sorry, Darcy."

"I'm sorry too." She leaned into his side, snuggling closer when Loki's arm snaked around her waist to hold her against him.

When she felt him kiss the top of her head, Darcy knew that even though neither of them had any idea how to make this marriage thing work, they would stumble through it together.

* * *

><p>It was her fifth morning in Asgard when Darcy finally hit her limit for how many of Loki's bullshit excuses she could tolerate.<p>

"I want to see Jane." She complained, turning to face Loki as she dragged a brush through her hair.

Loki was sitting on the edge of the bed, fastening the straps on his boots. "Darcy," His tone was warning her to drop the subject, but Darcy refused. This was one fight she would not be backing down from.

"Why are you being so weird about this? Every time I ask about Jane you totally clam up. She's okay, isn't she?" Darcy questioned, growing worried by Loki's lack of response.

"I do not wish to talk about it." Loki scowled at his boot, forcefully tugging at one of the leather straps.

"I'm not going to drop this." Darcy said, setting down the brush and moving to stand in front of him. "One way or another I'm going to find out so you might as well tell me now."

Loki sighed, finishing with his boot and finally lifting his eyes to meet hers. "Fine." When he spoke, his voice was hard, the words short and clipped, "Jane Foster is confined to bed rest. She is finding her pregnancy to be rather difficult."

For a minute, all Darcy could do was stare at him wide-eyed, her mouth opening and closing soundlessly.

"Darcy?" Loki sounded concerned, "Are you alright?"

That's when she reached out and smacked him in the arm.

"No, I'm not alright!" She cried, hitting him twice more just for the hell of it, "My friend is _pregnant_, stuck in bed, and probably scared to death about possibly losing her baby, and you never thought to tell me any of this? What's wrong with you?!"

A muscle in Loki's jaw ticked. He pushed off the bed, standing at his full height and glaring down at Darcy. It he was trying to intimidate her, it didn't work. She wasn't afraid of him and even if she had been, she was far too mad to leave any room in her head for fear.

"I said I did not want to discuss it." He ground out between gritted teeth. He tried to push past Darcy but she blocked his way, planting her hands on his chest to stop him.

"Why?" Darcy pressed on, ignoring the glare that Loki directed at her. What was that saying? 'If looks could kill...?' Yeah, she'd be flat on the floor by now.

"Leave it be, Darcy." He warned, his voice growing sharp with irritation.

"No," she snapped at him. "God, just tell me already!"

"Fine," Loki snarled. "You wish to know why I refuse to speak of your precious Jane? I want no part of it because her pregnancy is just another crowning achievement on Thor's long list of accomplishments." His voice twisted with bitterness, "Oh, you should have heard how _proud_ Frigga and Odin were when they found out. The first in line to the throne, the best warrior this realm has ever seen, the perfect golden son, and now he will soon produce an heir."

"You're jealous," Darcy spoke softly, her angry quickly deflating into sympathy when she realized that Loki was envious of his brother. Not only had Thor found a woman who loved him and gotten married, but now he was about to have a kid who would take Loki's place as the second in line to the throne. Yep, a drooling, babbling baby would have a better shot at being king than Loki ever would. When she thought about it like that, Darcy could understand why Loki was so reluctant to talk about it.

"I am not jealous." Loki looked away, his mouth tightening into a firm line.

"Uh, yeah you are." Darcy gave him a skeptical look, "This is like the textbook definition of jealousy. You're thinking that everything came so easily to Thor, right? That he's got the perfect life. Everyone loved him to begin with and now they're just gonna love him even more once Jane pops out a perfect little Thor Junior."

Loki gave a small, reluctant nod of agreement.

"The thing is," Darcy continued, "it _didn't_ come easily. Thor went through a lot of shit before he got to where he is now. I was there when he landed in New Mexico, I saw it happen. And besides," she lightened her tone, poking Loki in the chest teasingly, "you're not doing all that bad yourself. You've got a smokin' hot fiancée for one thing."

The edge of Loki's mouth pulled up into a small smile. "I suppose that is true. Although..." He shook his head, his jaw tightening again.

"Come on," Darcy urged. "Just say it."

Loki blew out a loud breath before continuing, "I may have a lovely fiancée, but I forced you into this charade for your own safety. It is nothing more than a marriage of convenience."

There was such a sweet, sad look on his face, Darcy wanted to wrap him up in a hug and protect him from everything bad in the world.

"So ask me again." She said suddenly.

Loki gave her a quizzical look, "What?"

"Ask me again." Darcy pulled the engagement ring off her finger and handed it over to him. "Pretend there's no HYDRA, no SHIELD...hell, pretend there's no Thor or Jane even, and then ask me again."

"Darcy, you don't need to-"

"Do it." She ordered.

With a sigh, Loki dropped to one knee, holding the ring in his palm, "Darcy," when he looked up at her, his face full of uncertainty, "would you marry me?"

"Yes." Darcy answered without any doubt, "I _want_ to marry you, Loki."

He slid the ring back into place on her finger before looking up at her. His expression was a mixture of shock, admiration, and bewilderment that nearly made Darcy laugh.

"Now would be the time for you to kiss me." She prompted, grinning at him.

Loki got to his feet and immediately pulled her into his arms, his mouth coming down hard on hers. Darcy brought her arms around his neck, her fingers threading through his hair as she kissed him back hungrily.

When they parted, Loki's voice was husky. "Would it be terribly improper of me to make love to my fiancée before we are wed?"

His lips began to work their way down the side of her throat and Darcy's legs instantly turned to jelly. "Nope," she panted, yanking up the hem of his shirt to run her hands over his skin. "Believe me, right now it would be a crime for you not to."

Loki chuckled, pressing a single kiss to the base of her throat. "My mother will be expecting us for breakfast shortly."

Darcy pulled her head back to look at him, giving him a grin that was full of challenge. "So how quick can you be, mischief man?"

Pretty damn quick, as it turned out.

In hardly any time at all, Darcy was on the bed, naked and panting as Loki slid into her.

"Oh my God, yes." She groaned as Loki's hand closed around her thigh, hitching her leg up higher around his waist.

"Tomorrow." Loki spoke on a rush of breath, his eyes briefly closing when Darcy dragged her nails down his back.

In her current blissed-out state, Darcy could only manage a mumbled reply of "Huh?"

"We should get married tomorrow." Loki clarified, bending his head to kiss her. Their mouths stayed fused together for a long time and when they finally parted, Loki was breathing heavily. "I do not want to wait any longer."

"Tomorrow." Darcy affirmed, "But only on one condition."

Loki's hips momentarily stilled. "Please do not say what I think you're about to say."

"Oh, I'm saying it." Darcy arched her back, making Loki let out a groan before he began to move again. "We get married tomorrow only if you let me get some of my things from my apartment first."

Loki dropped his head into the crook of her neck. "I cannot believe you are negotiating during sex."

"So do we have a deal?" Darcy's voice faltered when Loki rocked his hips in a particularly amazing way.

Loki lifted his head to look at her. "You're relentless." He kissed the column of her throat and Darcy tightened her thighs around him, letting out a low whine of pleasure. "I find it incredibly attractive." He whispered the confession into her ear.

"Is that a yes?" Darcy could barely get the words out. A shiver passed through her body as she felt her pleasure building into an orgasm.

"Yes." He sealed the promise with a kiss hot enough to make Darcy moan into his mouth.

With a sudden rush of affection, she brought her hand to his face, her thumb brushing gently over his cheekbone. "This is gonna be good. You and me."

"Not just good," Loki's eyes fixed on hers. They were bright, glimmering with feeling, "_exceptional_."

Darcy wholeheartedly agreed.


	3. Chapter 3

The wedding had been a small affair. After all, Darcy was still a fugitive and Loki was in possession of far more enemies than friends. The girl on the run and the criminal trickster. When she thought about it like that, they actually made a pretty good pair.

Jane acted as her bridesmaid and when Darcy finally laid eyes on her former boss, she immediately pulled Jane into a giant hug (well, as much of a hug as Darcy could manage considering Jane's substantial belly). Aside from looking like she was about to pop at any minute, Darcy was relieved to find that Jane was doing well.

While Jane's greeting had been full of warmth, Odin's was bordering on frigid and Darcy tried not to take it too personally when his expression hardened upon seeing her, the strength of his glare feeling a bit like being struck by a mini Myeuh-Myeuh.

The Allfather seemed to have a grand total of just two facial expressions, Darcy had decided: blatant disapproval or skepticism, and around her, he managed to wear an interesting combination of both looks at once. It was impressive, really.

The actual ceremony had passed in a bit of a blur but there had been one thing that very clearly stuck out in Darcy's mind: the way Loki had looked as he stood across the altar from her.

Everything about him had been stupidly attractive, from the formal Asgardian clothing he wore to the way he spoke his vows so sincerely, and Darcy made sure to show him _exactly_ how much she liked it once they had returned to their bedroom that evening.

Adjusting to life as a wife was actually fairly easy for Darcy. Her relationship with Loki remained the same as it had always been: full of teasing, passion, and blow-out arguments that usually led them straight into another round of passion.

When it came to adjusting to life as a princess though...well, that was another matter.

It was unbecoming of a princess to swear, Darcy had repeatedly been told. It was also improper to sit without crossing her ankles, or to walk around the palace in jeans instead of a dress, or to make out with Loki in the gardens while her hand was down the front of his pants (though she couldn't say she was sorry for that one). There were a million other things on her so-called 'do not do' list that Darcy couldn't even remember at this point.

The attention didn't stay on her for long, though. Much to Darcy's relief, her blunders as a newbie princess were soon overshadowed by the arrival of Thor Junior.

"Impatient little bugger," Darcy commented as she prodded Loki down the hallway towards the medical wing. "Jane's due date wasn't for another week still."

Loki let out a small huff of annoyance. "So the babe is already as obnoxious as his father. Simply wonderful."

Darcy rolled her eyes, playfully bumping him with her shoulder. "You know, you could try going in there with an open mind."

Loki looked at her, blinked once, and then replied as if the answer were blatantly obvious. "No."

Darcy shook her head, grinning slightly. "I think marriage has turned you into a crusty old man," she declared.

That got a reaction out of him.

Loki gripped her upper arms and pushed her against the nearest wall. Darcy's heart thumped a mile a minute in her chest as she anxiously anticipated his next move. She loved getting under his skin, loved seeing how far she could push him, and judging by the hardness in his pants, he liked it too.

"Does anything about me seem _crusty_ or _old_ to you?" He practically growled, pushing his hips against her.

"Loki," Darcy panted as he dipped his head, the heat of his breath tickling her neck and making her squirm, "we're supposed to be visiting the baby, not practicing our own baby-making skills in a hallway."

"I would rather stay here and finish what I've started." He sucked on the skin over her pulse point and Darcy had to grab onto his shoulders so she wouldn't keel over.

"That sounds good, like, _really, really_ good," Darcy replied breathlessly, "but Thor and Jane are expecting us."

The mention of his brother seemed to kill Loki's mood and he released Darcy, taking a short step back.

Darcy straightened out her rumpled shirt and ran her palms over her hair to make sure it didn't look too wild. Then she popped up onto her toes and planted a kiss on Loki's lips. "Trust me," she promised, "you are _so_ finishing that later."

* * *

><p>"Hi baby Alric," Darcy cooed, leaning over the edge of Jane's bed to get a better look at the little bundle cradled in her arms. "Man, he's cute. Congrats you guys."<p>

"Thank you, Darcy," Thor pulled his eyes away from his son long enough to shoot Darcy a quick grin overflowing with fatherly pride. "We are most fortunate." He squeezed Jane's shoulder affectionately, causing his wife to look up at him with a wide but tired smile.

"Very fortunate," Jane agreed. "Thanks for being here, Darce."

"Are you kidding?" Darcy replied. "As if I would miss this!"

Jane laughed quietly, careful not to disturb the sleeping baby in her arms. Her eyes shifted over Darcy's shoulder to the figure standing awkwardly in the far corner of the room. "Loki, you can come closer if you want." Jane offered a bit hesitantly.

"Yes, please do, brother." Thor encouraged, "In fact, Jane and I have something we would like to ask you and Darcy."

Loki reluctantly came to stand at Darcy's side. His hands kept clenching and unclenching, Darcy noticed, and he was looking more than a little uncomfortable. Wary, even.

The baby stirred in Jane's arms, his little mouth opening wide as a gurgling yawn escaped before he settled back into sleep. As Loki peered down at his nephew, his face remained unreadable but Darcy saw his throat move as he swallowed hard.

"Jane has told me there is a Midgardian tradition of choosing guardians for your children." Thor said.

"Godparents," Jane clarified.

Thor nodded, turning his attention to Darcy and Loki. "We would be honored if you would act as Godparents to Alric."

"For reals?" Darcy asked, her eyes widening.

"Really," Jane confirmed.

Darcy nodded her head eagerly. "Hell yeah! We'd be happy to! Wouldn't we, Loki?" She not-so-subtly elbowed him in the ribs.

Loki sucked in a sharp breath before glaring at her. "Delighted," he grumbled, sounding anything but.

"Can I hold him?" Darcy asked.

"Sure." Jane passed the small bundle to Darcy and she cradled the baby carefully in her arms.

"Hey, kiddo." Darcy smiled down at Alric, "you lucked out, dude. Not only do you have awesome parents but your Auntie Darcy is totally rad. We're gonna get into so much trouble together, you just wait."

"And there's my greatest nightmare come to life." Jane collapsed back against her pillows with a sigh.

"Fun trouble," Darcy assured her. "It won't be dangerous...much."

Thor laughed, bending to plant a consoling kiss on Jane's cheek. "We have the upmost faith in you, Darcy."

"Thanks, big guy." Darcy beamed at him before turning her attention to Loki. "Wanna hold him?"

Loki's eyes widened and he took a small step backwards. "That will not be necessary."

"Oh, come on. Just once, then I won't bug you about it again," Darcy promised. "_Pleeeeease_?" She dragged out the 'e' until Loki finally sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"The things I do for you," he muttered.

Grinning, Darcy carefully settled the baby in Loki's arms. "There ya go. Not so bad, right? Just remember to support his head."

It was hard not to laugh. From the look on Loki's face, you'd think he was holding a bag of grenades instead of a baby.

Alric sighed deeply in his sleep, his lips parting as a spit bubble dribbled lazily down his chin. Loki frowned, clearly disgusted when the drool landed on his hand and soaked into the cuff of his shirt. "Darcy, it spit on me."

Darcy had to bite down on her lower lip to keep from giggling as she struggled to keep a straight face.

When Loki's expression changed to one of bewildered shock, she couldn't hold back an amused snort.

"Darcy, I believe it has wet itself."

"_He_ is a baby, Loki. That's what they do." Darcy replied, the words coming out slightly choked as she tried not to laugh at him.

All of a sudden, Alric's eyes popped open. The baby struggled in his blankets until he managed to pull free one arm and wave a pudgy little fist in the air, whimpering loudly.

Loki looked to Darcy, alarm clearly written on his face.

"Give him your hand," Darcy prompted.

Loki shifted the baby so he rested in the crook of his arm and then raised his free hand. Alric immediately wrapped his little fist around Loki's index finger. The baby stared up at Loki, his eyes bright with interest. They were the same clear, vivid blue as Thor's, Darcy noted.

The atmosphere in the room seemed to shift, growing quieter; more serious. A moment passed where no one spoke and Darcy watched Loki curiously, wondering what his reaction would be.

As Loki stared at the baby, an odd expression flickered across his face, almost too quick for Darcy to catch. If she had to guess, she would have called it determination.

"_É__g mun ekki sleppa af þér, litla,_" Loki murmured, gently extracting his finger from Alric's grip. Alric blinked up at him before his eyes closed and he gave a content little sigh.

When Jane accepted the baby back into her arms, she leaned towards her husband with a soft whisper. "What did he say?"

Thor didn't answer; he was too busy blinking back tears.

* * *

><p>"We have yet to take a honeymoon." Loki rolled onto his side to face Darcy, reaching out to brush a piece of stray hair from her face.<p>

"Yeah, I know." Darcy burrowed further under the blankets, attempting to ward off the chill of the early morning air. Autumn was quickly approaching and the fact that she was naked under her blankets probably didn't help. She'd been too tired to redress after Loki had stripped her out of her PJ's the night before.

Loki shifted closer, drawing Darcy into his arms so she rested against the warmth of his skin. For being part Frost Giant, the guy was like a massive space heater, Darcy mused as she buried her nose in the curve of his neck. She certainly wasn't complaining although she was determined to get Loki to eventually show her his frosty side. He still refused any time she asked, giving the weak excuse of not wanting to hurt her. That was a load of lame-ass baloney in Darcy's opinion.

"What troubles you?" Loki asked as his warm hands rubbed along her back. "I thought you would be begging to visit the other realms by now."

"I want to, but there's something I need to do first." Darcy admitted, pulling her face back so she could meet his eyes. She sucked in a deep breath before continuing, "I need to go back to Earth. Just for a little while."

"Absolutely not," Loki immediately replied.

"It won't be for long," Darcy reasoned, "I just need to see what's going on with HYDRA."

"Heimdall can easily provide you with that information," Loki pointed out. His arms tightened around her reflexively, like he was afraid she would leave that very minute.

Darcy shook her head. "I have a responsibility to SHIELD. I can't hide here forever. I have to help them."

"Well, you're certainly not going off half-cocked by yourself." Loki grumbled. "The only way I would allow you to leave is if I were to accompany you."

"Okay, two problems there," Darcy stated, wiggling free of his grasp so she could sit up. "First of all, I don't need your permission. Secondly, this is between me and HYDRA. You don't need to fight my battles for me."

Loki made a short, exasperated noise as he pushed himself up into a sitting position beside her. "Need I remind you that marriage is a _partnership?"_ he emphasized.

"Thank you, Dr. Phil." Darcy rolled her eyes.

"I am unfamiliar with the physician you speak of." Loki's face was full of blank confusion.

"You know, that dude with a big talk show and an even bigger mustache...?" Darcy shook her head dismissively. "Okay, not important. You're just trying to distract me," she accused, pointing a finger at him.

When a slow, sly smile spread across Loki's face, she knew she was right. The smile soon dropped and his face became sober again. "In all seriousness, Darcy, what you are proposing is dangerous."

"I know," she admitted, looking down at her hands. Along with her wedding ring, she still wore the silver engagement band Loki had magicked for her. He had offered to get her a new proper engagement ring, one that wasn't made from a quarter she'd pulled out of the depths of her purse, but Darcy didn't want a new ring. She'd grown surprisingly fond of this one.

Loki let out a deep sigh and rubbed his hand over his face tiredly. "There is no changing your mind? You are absolutely certain that you wish to do this?"

"One hundred percent," Darcy answered surely. "I already have a plan and everything, and you know there's no changing my mind once I've decided to do something. I'm stubborn like that." She smiled at him sweetly, "must have picked that up from you."

At that, the corner of Loki's mouth quirked up into a smile. "Fine," he relented, "we shall take the day to prepare and then travel to Midgard tomorrow."

"Yes!" Darcy pumped her fist in the air in victory. "See, this is why I love you." Her eyes widened when she realized exactly what she'd said. Although they'd both made it obvious that they cared about each other, the 'L' word had never actually been spoken. Actually, Darcy was surprised she hadn't wound up blurting it out before now thanks to her serious lack of a brain-to-mouth filter.

When she looked at Loki, she found him watching her with a wide-eyed expression. His eyes seemed to harden then, and when he spoke, his voice was low. "Tell me that was a slip of the tongue."

He was giving her a chance to back out, she realized. A chance to call it a mistake and pretend it never happened. The fact that he automatically assumed she didn't mean it made Darcy's heart ache for him. What the hell had happened to make him think that he was so unworthy of being loved?

Whatever it was, she'd wheedle it out of him some day. Just add that to her to do list, right underneath getting Loki to show her his frosty side.

In the meantime, he could take his emo I-don't-deserve-love bullshit and shove it where the sun don't shine. She was his wife now, his _partner_, as he had so annoyingly reminded her only moments before, and she was going to be committed to him whether he liked it or not.

Forgetting all about the cold, Darcy flung off her blankets and crawled across the bed until she was straddling Loki's lap. She put her hands on his chest and leaned forward, so close that their noses touched. Then she looked him straight in the eye and replied, "I meant it, and if you call me a liar, I'll punch you in the face."

She almost made him laugh, which she counted as a win.

His lips pulled up into an amused half smile as he slowly slid his hands up her bare thighs. "I know not what I did to deserve you," he spoke quietly, "but I thank Valhalla every day."

Then he gently lowered her down onto the mattress and covered her mouth with his own. Darcy wound her arms around his neck as her legs automatically fell open in invitation. As Loki settled between her thighs, she said her own silent thanks to whatever force had brought the two of them together.

* * *

><p>Heimdall had been able to give them the location they needed.<p>

Darcy's contact was in Florida, working as part of a small group of still-functioning SHIELD agents operating under the radar.

"Can you zap us to Miami?" Darcy asked Loki as they stood before the Bifrost. "Ugh, and did you have to make this so tight?" She complained, tugging at the collar of her jacket.

Loki had created an all black outfit for her consisting of thick, leathery pants and a zip-up jacket made of a similar material. Darcy assumed that the heaviness meant they were bullet-proof and when she asked Loki, he confirmed her suspicion with a nod.

"The tightness provides better mobility," he answered simply, "and to answer your initial question, I will not be _zapping_ us. We will travel via the Bifrost. I wish to conserve my magic in case we encounter an urgent need for it later."

"Smart idea. I knew I brought you along for a reason." Darcy grinned.

Loki raised his eyebrows. "Then am I to assume that I am the brains and you are the brawn of this little operation?"

"Damn right." Darcy confirmed with an emphatic nod.

"Are you prepared for your departure?" Heimdall's deep voice traveled across the room from where he stood on a small platform preparing to activate the Bifrost.

"Are we?" Loki looked down at Darcy. Doubt was clouding his face and Darcy reached for his hand, squeezing it tightly.

"We're good." Darcy assured him. "My contact is solid. I trust her; she wouldn't turn on SHIELD."

"And you have all the weapons I gave you?" Loki pressed.

"Yup," Darcy confirmed. There was currently a knife in her boot, a second knife hidden in a pocket of her jacket, and a small handgun tucked into the waistband of her pants. Loki had created the gun for her and it had taken him nearly half a day to get the specs right since he was so unfamiliar with the weapon.

When Darcy had asked why there were no guns on Asgard (weren't they the easier choice compared to swords?) Loki had smiled tightly and replied, "There is pride in wearing the blood of your enemies."

Ick. She'd stick with the gun.

Satisfied that Darcy was packing enough pointy, deadly objects, Loki turned to Heimdall. "We are ready," he confirmed, slipping his arm around Darcy and holding her tightly to his side.

"Miami, here we come," Darcy muttered as they were engulfed in the bright light of the Bifrost. She squeezed her eyes shut and hoped that when they reached her SHIELD contact, their reception would be as warm as the balmy Florida weather.

The last thing they needed was to walk into a hurricane.

* * *

><p>"You'd better wait here." Darcy peeked around the corner of the building she and Loki were currently hiding behind. "It'll be easier. Skye's gonna have a whole lot of questions if she sees you with me."<p>

Loki looked like he wanted to argue but instead gave a short, reluctant nod of agreement. "Fine, but if you do not return in five minutes, I'm coming to get you."

"I need more time than that! Give me ten minutes." Darcy countered.

"Eight and that is my final offer." Loki crossed his arms, giving her a look that said he was done negotiating.

Darcy blew out a breath. "Okay."

She stuck her head around the corner again, scoping out the white utility van parked down the street. According to Heimdall's all-seeing eyes, Skye was working out of the back of the vehicle. Probably riding off public wifi while she hacked into whatever databases SHIELD needed her to gather intel from, Darcy guessed.

"Could you magic me something a little less conspicuous? Make me look like a tourist?" Darcy said to Loki as she glanced down at her black leather ensemble.

With a simple move of his arm, Loki changed her outfit into a pair of tan Bermuda shorts and the most ugly-ass Hawaiian t-shirt Darcy had ever laid eyes on.

"Ew," she wrinkled her nose, plucking at the front of her shirt, "not _that _tourist-y."

Loki sighed. "If you recall, I am conserving my magic. We cannot afford for you to be concerned with fashion."

"Says the man with a giant golden horny helmet," Darcy retorted.

"Go. Meet your contact before I change my mind about this entire ill-conceived plan." Loki gave her a push, practically shoving her out onto the sidewalk.

Darcy stumbled and shot him a deadly glare over her shoulder before making her way towards the white van.

She approached the vehicle from behind and rapped her knuckles on the closed double doors. "Anyone home?"

The left door popped open a few inches and a brunette head peeked out. "Darcy? What are you doing here...and what the hell are you _wearing_?"

"Long story," Darcy responded. "Can I come in?"

Skye pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. "Depends. I hate to ask, but do you have any weapons on you? Can't be too careful who you trust these days."

"I understand." When Darcy pulled up the hem of her shirt she was relieved to see that whatever magic Loki had done to change her outfit had also gotten rid of her knives and gun. The waistband of her shorts and both her pockets were thankfully empty.

Skye nodded approvingly and swung the door open wider. "Get in here quick!"

Darcy scrambled into the back of the vehicle, shutting the door behind her. The interior of the van was dark, leaving Darcy feeling slightly disoriented as Skye pushed her down onto a makeshift seat. It was really just a big metal storage box and _ouch_, that would definitely be leaving a mark on Darcy's butt. Sure enough, she'd sat right on top of one of the big metal latches. Just her luck.

Skye climbed her way over Darcy's legs (the van had looked a hell of a lot roomier from the outside, Darcy decided) and plopped herself back in front of her computer. "Oh my God, where have you been? I tried to track you online but it was like you just disappeared off the face of the planet!"

Darcy suppressed a snort. If only Skye knew how close to the truth that actually was.

"Well," Darcy shifted on the hard storage box with a wince, "it's a long story. I guess you could say I'm in hiding. I made it clear to HYDRA, like, kick-in-the-balls clear, that I'm not willing to join them, so I figured I should lay low for a while." That was a close enough explanation, right?

Skye grinned, the glow of her laptop screen illuminating her face. "Kick-in-the-balls clear? Nicely done, Lewis. Who was the lucky agent?"

"Andersen."

"Damn." Skye's grin dropped, "so they've got him too."

"Yeah. That's about all the info I've got for you." Darcy admitted, "I'm a little out of the loop. I don't even know what went down in Washington. Last I heard, Fury and Rogers were both supposedly dead."

Skye hesitated. "Fury is...out of the picture. Steve's okay though. Found him washed up on shore after the helicarrier explosion."

"What about HYDRA?" Darcy questioned, leaning forward eagerly.

"Well," Skye brushed her bangs out of her eyes and gave a tired sigh, "they're still alive and kicking. On our last count, they had fifteen operational bases but those are just the ones we could find. There could be a dozen more hidden locations for all we know."

"Well...shit." Darcy leaned back until her shoulders hit the wall of the van with a dull thud.

"Yep."

The vehicle went quiet except for the soft clack of Skye's fingers moving across her keyboard.

"You know," she said, "we're about to take down a base in Brussels. We could use the extra help...and I could sure as hell use the company."

Darcy laughed. "How many dudes are you stuck with?"

"Lots," Skye made a face, "it's a total sausage-fest, and Tripp is the only one who actually cleans up after himself."

"I wish I could help you out," Darcy said sympathetically, "but I've got something of my own already in the works. That's kind of why I'm here, actually." She leaned over and peered at Skye's laptop hopefully, "any chance you could hook me up with a map of SHIELD's New York office?"

* * *

><p>"I don't like this, Darcy." Loki hissed as they walked along a damp, dark tunnel of SHIELD's former New York base. In his palm he held a small ball of light which he used to guide their way and illuminate the building blueprints that Darcy was currently studying.<p>

"Relax," Darcy murmured, tracing her finger along one of the lines on the blueprint, using it as a map to guide them down the tunnel. "We're not going to confront anyone. I just want to do a little creative rewiring on the electrical box."

"Remind me again why we're doing this?" Loki grimaced as his boot landed in a wet, squishy pile of...something. Darcy didn't even want to consider what was coating the floors of these tunnels. She was pretty sure she'd seen a rat the size of a house cat scurry past them earlier.

"We're here for revenge. I want to bring this puppy down from the inside." Darcy grinned at him wickedly.

Loki gave a noncommittal grunt. "While I would normally appreciate your desire to cause chaos, at the moment I am more interested in getting out of this nauseating trough of putrescence."

"You know," Darcy commented as she led them around a corner, "you're the only person I know whose language gets fancier the more pissed off you get."

"Your point?" Loki asked grumpily as he trudged along behind her.

"It's cute." Darcy suddenly stopped, causing Loki to nearly trip over her. "Looks like this is the spot. Can you bring that light closer?"

Loki stepped forward and the light in his palm shone onto an old grey electrical box attached to the wall. Darcy shoved the building blueprints into her jacket before using both hands to wrench open the rusted door, exposing a mess of wires inside.

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Loki sounded skeptical as his eyes slowly traveled back and forth between Darcy and the giant tangle of wires.

"Yes," Darcy nodded. She chewed on her lip, tilting her head to the side as she considered the contents of the electrical box, "...I think I do?"

So maybe it looked a little more complicated than she'd thought it would be. Damn. She really should have asked Skye to hook her up with a copy of Electrical Wiring for Dummies too.

Loki groaned and raked a hand through his hair, causing the ends to stick up at odd angles. "Darcy-"

"Just give me a second to figure it out," she turned her attention back to the box. "I wonder if I get cell reception down here. I'm sure I could Google how to–hey!"

She was interrupted when Loki looped an arm around her waist and physically dragged her out of the way.

"Stupid woman," he muttered under his breath, "you're going to get yourself killed."

"Hey!" Darcy cried, glaring up at him. "Remember that you're married to this stupid woman and she can make your life a living hell."

"Really? Because it feels as though I am already in hell." Loki grumbled as he released his hold on her and leaned in to examine the jumble of electrical wires.

Darcy crossed her arms over her chest. "Oh, and I suppose _you_ know what wires to cut?"

"Quiet, Darcy." Loki's eyes narrowed in concentration as he stared at the box. After a minute, he gave a satisfied nod and shut the door with a rusty squeak.

"What did you just do?" Darcy asked him curiously. It didn't look like anything had happened as far as she could tell.

"As you said earlier, a little creative rewiring." The grin Loki gave her was absolutely criminal.

"You used your magic, didn't you?" Darcy accused, narrowing her eyes as Loki took her hand and began pulling her back down the tunnel in the direction they had come from. "What happened to saving it for emergencies?"

"Right now, getting out of this damned tunnel before I lose my mind qualifies as an emergency," Loki stated.

"So what did you do to the box?" Darcy had to practically jog to keep up with his long, quick strides.

"It is set to detonate." Loki replied. "The resulting explosion should be large enough to level the entire building."

"Seriously?" Darcy blinked at him. "Is there anything you _can't_ do with your magic?"

Loki made a _hmm_ noise as he briefly considered her question before answering smugly. "Not to my knowledge."

"Cocky buttface." Darcy muttered as they approached their exit point. Thanks to the glowing light in Loki's palm, she could see the gleam of the metal ladder up ahead that would lead to the hatch they had used to first enter the tunnel.

"Oh, I see we are reverting to childish insults now? I -" Loki suddenly stilled, his hand automatically tightening around Darcy's until it felt like her bones were grinding together. "We are not alone." He murmured lowly.

An instant later he was proven right as four HYDRA agents seemed to slide out of the shadows like a silent, deadly fog.

Loki released Darcy's hand and shoved her towards the ladder before drawing two long, sharp blades from inside his jacket.

He made a double of himself and sent it to distract the other HYDRA agents while he immediately made quick work of the first man, drawing blood from the agent's chest with his dagger before finishing the job with a quick and brutal twist of the man's neck.

While Loki moved on to the second and third agents, working efficiently with his double to bring down both men at once, the fourth man was making his way towards Darcy.

She automatically took a step backwards and the movement made her gun dig sharply into her back, as if it was reminding her of its presence. Darcy quickly drew her weapon and leveled it at the agent.

"First and only warning, dude." She released the safety with a click and arched an eyebrow in question. "So what's it gonna be?"

"I don't fear you, girl." The man spat, his own gun aimed steadily at her chest.

"Then perhaps you should fear _me_."

The man's eyes widened in surprise as he turned around and found Loki glaring at him darkly. The agent barely had time to open his mouth before Loki grabbed him by the wrist, wrenching his arm back at an unnatural angle. The agent let out a scream of pain, his hand going limp as his gun dropped to the ground.

Loki fought like it was an art form, Darcy thought as she watched him spin, stab, and slice with his blade. Yep, seeing her significant other get violent with a knife was most definitely turning her on. God, she needed some serious therapy when this was all over.

When the agent fell to the ground in a crumpled heap, Darcy sighed, clicked the safety back on her gun, and tucked it into the waistband of her pants. "I had him, you know. I could have made the shot."

Loki advanced on her slowly, his eyes dark and sharp. He was still in predator mode, Darcy realized, and a little thrill of excitement shot up her spine.

"I know," Loki's voice was low and rumbling in a way that brought goosebumps to Darcy's skin, "but I do not want you to bloody your hands. Murder is a heavy burden to bear." His eyes seemed to give away his age at that moment, giving Darcy a brief glimpse into centuries of combat and misdeeds, and she wondered just how much his own burden weighed.

He put a hand on her back and nudged her towards the ladder but Darcy's feet had a mind of their own, staying firmly rooted in place as she stared up at him.

"What?" He asked in a growly tone full of impatience.

Darcy studied him for a moment before finally answering. "That was fucking _hot_."

Loki made a noise in his throat that sounded like a cross between a laugh and a groan. His hands skimmed down her back as he leaned into her, and when Darcy felt his breath hot against her ear, her knees nearly gave out. "We return to Asgard _now_. I need you safe, in our bed, naked beneath me."

"Um, yes please." Darcy's voice was weak as she dug her fingers into the soft leather of his coat sleeves. "C'mon, let's blow this joint before it literally blows up on us."

* * *

><p>Loki was most definitely in a mood as he dragged Darcy through the palace once they'd returned to Asgard. The horse ride across the rainbow bridge had been full of terse silence and Loki's body had felt rigid and stiff against Darcy as she'd clung to him with a death grip (she still hadn't mastered the whole horse riding thing. Just another one of her princess failures, but how in the hell was she expected ride side saddle all dainty-like without falling off? It was a freaking impossibility, if you asked her.)<p>

Once they'd reached their bedroom, Darcy quickly shrugged out of her tight jacket and made sure to lay out all her weapons on Loki's desk before she wound up accidentally stabbing herself. She knew how to handle a gun but the knives made her nervous. She's leave those to Loki, they seemed to be his specialty anyway.

Speaking of knives...when she looked up, Loki was absently twirling his dagger between his fingers as he studied her. It would have been crap-your-pants scary if she hadn't known that the dark look in his eyes was desire, not murder.

When Darcy had laid down her last knife, she planted her hands on her hips. "I seem to remember you making some kind of promise in that tunnel. One that involved nakedness and our bed. You planning to deliver on that?"

Loki grinned darkly as he approached her, still playing with that damned dagger in his hand. "Don't worry, darling, deliver I will."

Darcy shivered at the tone of his voice. He was moving painfully slow, taking calculated steps towards her, and when he finally stood directly before her, Darcy felt her mouth go dry. Fuck, he really was sexy all decked out in those black and green leathers with that intense look on his face.

He tossed his knife onto the desk behind her before cupping her face in his hands. "I worried for you today," he admitted in a rough voice, "promise me you have no more foolhardy plans in mind."

"Promise," Darcy vowed, the word coming out on a quiet breath.

Then Loki's mouth was on hers, hard and insistent. Darcy pressed herself against him, sliding her arms up over his shoulders to wind around his neck.

She moaned as Loki bucked his hips against her and when Darcy felt her butt hit the desk behind her, she pulled her head back just long enough to mutter, "bed."

Loki walked her towards the bed while he worked on removing her shirt and bra at the same time, and when Darcy's back hit the mattress, he was on top of her instantly.

"I cannot wait," he warned as his hands tugged off her pants and the black boyshorts she wore underneath, "I cannot be gentle."

"I don't want you to be gentle," Darcy whispered hotly into his ear. "Now get naked."

She heard him groan as he pressed a hard kiss to her mouth before pulling back and using his magic to do away with his clothing.

"Now I'm really glad you conserved your magic," Darcy said with a grin. "If I had to wait for you to take off all that armour the old fashioned way, I think I would die of sexual frustration."

"Well, we certainly can't have that, can we?" Loki murmured, leaning over her as he nudged her knees apart.

True to his word, he couldn't wait and Darcy felt the hot length of him slide into her in one long stroke, leaving her gasping and arching her back off the bed.

Loki moaned at the contact, briefly dropping his head to the curve of her neck. "Always so wet and eager for me. You feel exquisite, Darcy." When he lifted his head to look at her, he began rocking his hips in earnest.

"Oh my God, keep talking." Darcy instructed in a throaty voice, matching each of his thrusts with a tilt of her pelvis. His voice, combined with the steady push of his hips, was doing amazing things to her.

"You make the most lovely noises for me," Loki continued in a low voice, increasing his pace and making Darcy's breath hitch, "your little gasps...the long, drawn out moans that tell me when you are close to coming undone...it is the sweetest music I have ever heard."

"Fuck, Loki." Darcy threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled his head down, kissing him hard. When her tongue swept into his mouth, she felt his body tremble and he made a strangled noise of pleasure in his throat.

His movements were swift and brutal now, and Darcy was almost certain that she'd be uncomfortably sore come morning but she didn't give a damn. She wanted to feel the after-effects of this; wanted him to linger on her body long after they finished.

She dragged her nails down his back, causing Loki to draw in a sharp breath. His eyes locked onto hers and they were nearly black, Darcy noted, large pupils rimmed in thin, blue-green irises.

His lips parted and at first Darcy thought he was just breathing heavily, but then she realized that he was preparing to say something. Something that required all his courage, from the looks of it.

"Darcy..." his hips began to falter as he neared his release, voice coming out raw. "I love you."

It felt like time had stopped. Darcy felt her heart skip a beat and for a minute, she forgot how to breathe. Tears unexpectedly sprang into her eyes as she wrapped her arms around him, wanting to feel every single inch of him against her skin. Her body was on fire, humming with pleasure as she teetered on the edge of an orgasm.

Loki's hips gave a sudden jerk, hitting her in just the right spot, and Darcy came with a loud cry, tightening her thighs around him. As her body arched off the mattress, she heard Loki groan deeply as he followed her off the edge, spilling inside her.

It took Loki a moment to recover before he rolled off of her, lying flat on his back as he caught his breath. Darcy turned her head to look at him, her own breath coming out in shallow pants.

"Wow," she said, "that was so mind-blowing, you made me forget to say it back."

"Say what?" Loki murmured, reaching out to run his hand along her side. He squeezed the curve of her hip, causing Darcy to roll over onto her side to bring her body closer to him.

"That I love you." She snuggled closer, reaching up to let her fingertips play along his jawbone. "Cause I do. I want you to know that."

Loki grasped her hand in his, bringing it to his mouth for a kiss before he locked both his arms around her securely. "Thank you, Darcy," he whispered into her hair.

* * *

><p>Darcy stood by the Bifrost next to Heimdall as the Asgardian gatekeeper kept watch over the realms. He was a quiet, stoic kind of dude but Darcy didn't mind. In fact, she enjoyed his quiet company whenever she came out here. Sometimes words just couldn't do justice to a moment anyway, and the sight outside of the room's large circular windows was something entirely beyond words. Totally breathtaking was the only thing that came to Darcy's mind, and even that seemed like an understatement.<p>

She jumped a little in surprise when a pair of arms suddenly slid around her from behind. "Hey. How'd you know I was here?"

Loki reached for her hand, giving her engagement ring a light tap before he linked his fingers with hers.

"Ah, the GPS wife-finder. Right." Darcy leaned into him, feeling utterly content when Loki bent his head to kiss the side of her neck.

"I shall give you a moment of privacy," Heimdall abandoned his post and when Darcy mouthed a 'thanks' to him, she could have sworn she saw him smile before he left the room, making his way out onto the bridge.

"How fares Midgard?" Loki asked her, his voice sounding extra rumbling to Darcy's ears since her back was pressed against his chest.

"It's ok. Heimdall said that SHIELD's making progress. It's slow but it's steady." Darcy replied, gazing out the window and into the inky depths of the universe. "I always feel like an ant when I come out here. Teeny tiny in the grand scheme of things, you know?"

She felt Loki's lips brush against the shell of her ear warmly. "You may believe that you are only a small speck sitting upon a branch of Yggdrasil but know this, Darcy: you are not insignificant. You are my entire world."

"Fuck, Loki. That's really beautiful." Darcy turned in his arms so she could give him a proper kiss. When they parted, she said, "How long have you been saving that little gem? Or was that just off the top of your head?"

"Darcy?"

"Yeah?"

"Be quiet, you are ruining the moment."

"Okay."

* * *

><p>(<em>ég mun ekki sleppa af þér , litla <em>= I will not fail you, little one.)

This chapter's really got it all: reluctant baby holding! Kicking HYDRA butt! Sexy declarations of love!  
>I hope you guys enjoyed it :)<p> 


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